Animal
by Shelfkid91
Summary: Four years after returning home, Naruto, Kakashi and the gang find themselves turned into various animals. But they soon find out this transformation, stupid and childish at first, is far more dangerous than any other jutsu they have ever come across.
1. Chapter 1

_Author's note: Hey guys! Welcome to _Animal_. To previous readers, welcome back! To new readers, this story is a sequel to another one of my stories called _Crossroads. _It is not imperative that you go back and read _Crossroads,_ but since it is a great story, I recommend doing it at some point in your life! _

_Also, my editor helped out with this story too! The designs of the characters vary from who designed them and who didn't. I'm not going to bore you with the details of who did what (mostly because I don't remember who did who… All I really remember is that I did Sasuke and Zeera did Kakashi… . Sorry…) _

_So yeah, story takes place four years after the events of _Crossroads. _Have fun and hopefully I'll do better with the whole updating thing!_

_Disclaimer: (because we all know that I have to do it!) By writing this story, I do not claim ownership of Naruto, the characters, places and ideas present in the story. They belong to their respected owners. This is for pure entertainment. No copyright infringement intended._

_Rated T for: Blood, violence, and mature themes._

_Chapter One: Monster_

_Great Naruto Bridge_

_October, 25th, 2010_

_0205hrs _

"You're late…"

The voice was quiet and breathy. Two cloaked men stood, not facing each other, on the center of the Great Naruto Bridge. One man had on a black cloak with red clouds while the second had on a full black one. "Only by a few moments…"

"That is sometimes all one has…" the second hissed softly. "Were you followed?"

"No."

The first heard the second shift his position, as if in agitation. "Not followed by anyone you didn't want to follow you…" the man corrected quietly. Sure enough, the black and red clad ninja had a second… A female with vivid blue hair, but the man knew she would stay hidden.

"Enough with this banter. Do you have something to offer me or did you call me at this unholy hour to chat?"

"Patience, my dear Nagato…" The man forced himself not to flinch. "Are you aware of the legend of Raikansuropu?"

"Transformation into a wolf?" Nagato whispered. "Or the medical condition where one believes they have turned into an animal?"

"Take your pick."

"Yes I've heard of it… Why do you want to discuss werewolves?"

"I come to offer you a jutsu I call Raikansuropu no Jutsu."

"the Art of the Werewolf?" Nagato shook his head. "That's absurd. What does it do? Turn the user into a wolf to be a slave to the full moon?"

There was a slight chuckle from the man behind him. "All in due time…"

"I won't agree to this plan unless I know what I'm getting my organization in to."

"Of course. Mistrusting and cautious. Exactly why I choose you, Nagato…" The Akatsuki leader held his ground. "The jutsu has no effect on the user if the user does not wish it. Its purpose is to transform anyone in the range of the jutsu to turn into an animal…"

Nagato shook his head slowly. "It doesn't sound practical… what's the point?"

"Have you ever heard of the Frog in Water experiment…?" Nagato didn't answer and the man didn't seem to mind. "It's said that a frog, with every ability to escape, will allow itself to slowly be boiled to death if the water is raised one degree at a time in slow intervals."

Nagato blinked slowly. "What does this have to with anything?" he snapped.

His question was ignored. "Do you know why the frog will not save itself?" There was no wait for an answer. "Because the frog doesn't notice the change until it's too late…"

"That's all good and well, but…"

"Patience!" the man snapped. " Raikansuropu doesn't only transform affected ninja in body, but also in mind. The change, however, is gradual, and…"

"Like the frog, they won't notice what's happening to them until it's too late…" Nagato finished. "But… Won't having animals running around make it difficult for us to attack?"

"No… You too will be turning into beasts, but not in the mind, just the body…"

"I see…" Nagato whispered. "And if I refuse…?"

"I will do this jutsu with or without you backing me up. If you want your group in on the secret and allow them to escape the mental affects of the jutsu, you won't refuse…"

"Then we accept…" Nagato agreed softly.

"Good… I wish you luck in your quest and for now, I bid you adieu.."

"Wait! Who are -…?" Nagato spun around, but all that was left where the man had been was a single fluttering leaf. "Konan!" Nagato called. "Did you see his face?"

"No, sir…" the blue haired woman whispered. "He was wearing a mask…"

_Naruto_

_Konoha, Kakashi's house_

_Same Day_

_0830hrs_

_"Kyuubi! Kyuubi, where are you?"_

_"Here, boy!" the fox replied, standing tall over the teenage. _

_"Kyuubi! What's happening? Where am I?" Pain was blossoming in his chest, spreading and growing like a noshed flame. The vision began fading. "Kyuubi!" Naruto screamed. The fox roared at him, as if in warning, but as his roar continued, it began to fade out of existence._

_A hand reached out and dragged his shoulder. Naruto screamed and fell back in a pool of blood. "Wha-?" he whispered as his strength began fading. _

_"You can't escape forever…" a bitter voice hissed. _

_"Orochimaru…?" _

_Pain ripped through his body again and Naruto gripped the ground. His whole body shook. "N-no…" he gasped…_

_"SENSEI !"_ the child screamed. He shook his head. "J-just a dream…" he gasped, still shaking. He went to grab his head, but stopped. When he looked down there was a black paw… "What…? Still dreaming…?" Naruto shook his head again and noticed ears hitting himself. He twisted his body around to see nine orange-tipped tails laying on the bed. "KAKASHI!" Naruto screamed.

He jumped off the bed but wobbled and dropped to all fours. Naruto looked back at his body. It was covered in sandy fur, the tips of the tails fading out into the same orange-red color the Kyuubi was. His four paws were socked with black fur giving the image of wearing black boots. Naruto turned his streamline head to his mirror. He head tall, pointed ears, capped with the same orange color as his tails. Fluffier fur fell across his shoulders and chest giving him the appearance of a lion-like mane. .

The body itself was graceful. The tails waved in a constant fan-like motion and everything about the body was stunning. Naruto shook his head and watched everything settle back into place. Naruto's ears pricked up. All around him he heard various animal sounds. Outside sounded like a zoo that wasn't maintained well at all.

"Naruto!" a voice screamed from outside his door. "Let me in!" Naruto turned to the door and blinked his bright orange eyes. How would he open the door…?

"Coming…" he called quietly and stepped towards the door. With a soft sigh, he turned his tails to the door and bucked like a horse. Surprising to him, his hind legs slid right through the door with little resistance milliseconds before a loud crash could be heard.

"Naruto…?" The boy turned fox turned around slowly and then jumped back. Before him was a lion, slightly smaller than the fox himself. Bi-colored eyes blinked at the fox. The lion was a dark navy blue, the color of the Jounin clothes, with green and red markings on his back as if he were wearing the Jounin vest. The lion's mane was a beautiful silvery-grey color and the paws were black.

"Sensei…?" Naruto asked quietly. "What's going on…?"

"I don't know…" Kakashi muttered. Naruto found it strange to hear his teacher's voice coming out of the lion's mouth, but he figured that Kakashi thought the same thing when he heard Naruto talk. The lion stood a good half foot smaller than the fox. Naruto noticed that he was broader in the shoulders and more muscular than the lion. "Genjutsu?"

"I don't think so…" Naruto whispered. "And I don't think we're the only ones…" Outside the noises became more panicked and confused as more ninja started to find their companions.

"Kakashi… Naruto-kun?" Naruto looked over Kakashi's head to see a tiger standing behind him. The creature was inverted, with a black body and orange stripes. It had an eye patch on its eye and orange goggles.

"Obito…?" Naruto asked. The tiger dipped his head. All three animals spun at the sound of a loud "oof" and a crash. Obito led the run back into Sakumo's room. What they found was a pure white wolf struggling with a vest.

"Dad…?" Kakashi ask. "What are you doing?" The wolf lifted his head at the sound and smiled sheepishly.

"Well… I want to wear my vest…" Sakumo whimpered softly.

"Why?" Kakashi asked. "You're a wolf… It's not like you _need_ to wear clothes…"

Sakumo looked at everyone and sighed. "I want to add color… Everyone else are different colors and well…"

"You're white," Naruto finished.

"Exactly!" Naruto watched as Kakashi lifted one of his massive paws and placed it on his forehead.

"I don't see how you're related to him, Kakashi…" a female voice teased behind them. Naruto turned his massive head to see a dark brown cat behind them. He blinked. The creature was about the size of a lioness, but not nearly as broad in the shoulders. It was built like a large Turkish Angora, but the most stunning feature of the cat were to two large, deep purple wings folded on its sides.

Kakashi and Obito were both staring, stunned, at the female creature. Sakumo had a devilish, wolf grin on his face and Naruto found the two members of old Team Seven's reactions to be hilarious . "Rin, I'm guessing." Sakumo observed as he seated himself and began attempting to pull the zipper up on his vest. Neither Obito or Kakashi had made any sort of move on Rin since she came to live with the hodge-podge family, though Naruto knew both wanted to.

"Hatake-sama, I don't think you really need that…" the girl whispered.

"Don't bother," Kakashi muttered as he sat down on his haunches. "There's no reasoning with him when he's like this…" The man looked at the assortment of animals assembled. "Now we just have to figure out why we're animals… Then go check on everyone else…"

"Akatsuki," Naruto stated with a matter-of-fact tone.

Kakashi lifted his head and blinked slowly at Naruto. "Why do you say that…? What purpose does this serve?"

Naruto shrugged. "Well, I'm the fox, right? And I'm assuming Gaara is a Raccoon Dog, and so on and so forth… The Akatsuki would be able to locate us easily. They probably have some sort of upper hand on this whole operation…"

"What about the Sound?" Obito asked doubtfully.

"No motive," Naruto answered before Kakashi could utter a word. "Why would Orochimaru want to turn us all into animals? It makes no sense to me…"

"Orochimaru is crazy…" Sakumo muttered as he rolled around on the floor, struggling with the zipper.

"Insanity doesn't account for something like this…" Kakashi muttered, cutting Naruto's remark. The fox shrugged and seated himself. He twisted around to lick at some dust on his shoulder as the man continued speaking. "I think Naruto might be right… The Akatsuki has better reasons for doing this to… Naruto…? What are you doing…?"

The fox stopped in mid-lick and turned to Kakashi, his tongue hanging out of his mouth. "W'a?" he asked with a cock of his head.

"Nothing…" Kakashi muttered and then bowed his head. "Whatever the reason, we don't know exactly when this jutsu does, so step lightly…" Naruto was only half listening. He was suddenly very interested in making sure his newly found pelt was clean. "Naruto! Stop that!" Kakashi snapped finally. Naruto let out an exasperated sigh and plopped on the ground. Kakashi sighed deeply.

"Well…"

_Sasuke_

_Oto, Base_

_Same Day_

_800hr_

A loud roar woke him up. It sounded angry and hateful, but also confused. Sasuke moaned softly and rolled over, but was instantly hit with a massive wave of pain in his back. The boy bolted up, blinking in confusion. He looked down at his hands to see black paws instead. _Lion?_ he thought. He gracefully jumped off his bed and looked at himself.

His body was pure black. He sighed and walked into his bathroom. He put his two massive front paws on the counter to look at himself in the mirror. He had a mane on his neck that was decorated in a flame pattern. He wasn't entirely correct about his first assumption. He _was_ a lion… but only part of the way down. Around mid belly his midnight fur changed into raven feathers. Sasuke blinked at the Eagle talons that made up his back feet. _Gryphon…?_ he thought, then he smirked. _Not bad… Not bad at all…_ He spread his black wings and jumped to see that on the inside of them was his Sharingan. _Well then…_ he thought with another, wider smirk. As he folded his wings, he noticed that when they came together, the pattered on the center of each wing created the Uchiha symbol. "Not bad…" Sasuke muttered. He was well pleased with his new form.

However, but the sound of another roar, he could tell that someone else wasn't all too pleased with their new form. Sasuke let out a loud yawn, marveling at his massive canines and then left his room, heading towards Orochimaru's. He passed Kabuto's, but didn't stop as he went. Besides the door was open and Kabuto's sent was beginning to become stale, meaning he hadn't been in the room for some time now.

Sasuke continued padding through the Labyrinth of hallways. _Why in the world do we need so many rooms…? _he asked silently. With a shrug, he finally made his way to Orochimaru's room. "Orochimaru-sama…?" Sasuke asked, but was answered with another angry roar, followed shortly by a terrified whinny.

The door suddenly exploded, spending shards of wood everywhere. Sasuke was face-to-face with a white lion with a long black mane. "Sasuke…?" the lion asked, astonished. Sasuke nodded. Behind the lion was an indigo horse with a white band across its belly and markings around its eyes that made it look like it was wearing glasses.

"And I'm guessing the equine thing behind you is Kabuto, right?" Sasuke asked as he sat down gracefully on his haunches. He noted with satisfaction that he was larger and more muscular than Orochimaru. "Funny, I would think you would be a snake, Orochimaru… And I figured Kabuto would be a rat…" Kabuto stomped his hoof and snorted in annoyance. Sasuke shrugged. "I wonder if _dear_ nii-san is a weasel…?"

"If this made sense, then yes he would be," Kabuto snorted. "But it doesn't make any sense, so he's probably a snake!"

"How fitting," Sasuke snapped. "You're quiet, Orochimaru-sama… Cat got your tongue?" Orochimaru roared in anger and annoyance at Sasuke, but Sasuke didn't so much as flinch. The lion in front of him was not threatening. He looked like a frail, brittle old thing. Scrawny and pale, Orochimaru wouldn't hold his own in a fight against Sasuke now. He figured that since hand signs were out of the question, their fights would be brute force alone, and Orochimaru would be snapped like a twig.

"What is going on, boy?" Orochimaru snarled finally.

"Now how would _I _know that, Orochimaru-sama? Maybe you should ask Kabuto. Isn't he the smart one?"

Kabuto narrowed his dark eyes. "I don't know what's going on anymore than anyone else does!" the horse snapped.

"Well then, I guess he's not as smart was we were all led to believe, huh?" Sasuke hissed. "Anyway, I don't see what the problem is. I don't mind this form at all."

Sasuke smirked at Kabuto. The man caught that he was being stared at and whinnied softly. Sasuke hissed and then laughed as the horse jumped nervously. _Oh, this can be fun. The man's a prey animal and I'm a predator. Eventually he will fear me… I just have to figure out how to get rid of Orochimaru… Lions are lazy creatures… Maybe he'll just make himself useless and leave us alone. I don't know how long that'll take… But I have time… I think I have all the time in the world… _

He flexed his wings, spreading them wide. He went to fold them, but stopped as he noticed Kabuto staring at them. His eyes moved until they found their way to the red feathers in the shape of the Sharingan. The horse's knees buckled suddenly and he dropped to the floor, whinnying and snorting fearfully.

Sasuke smirked as he folded his wings. _Oh, this is going to be fun…_

_Author's note: Awesome! I finally finished! Wow, that took forever! Sorry guys! _

_Just to clear things up, Sasuke is a _Gryphon, _not a _Griffin. _The difference is that a Gryphon is a term used for a half-lion, half-eagle creature with human intelligence and the ability to speak while a Griffin is just an animal that follows instinct. Since Sasuke will not be affected entirely by the jutsu, as far as the mind goes, he is and will be considered a Gryphon. _

_Rin isn't really anything but a winged cat. I like things with wings, so that's why she's that! You guys will get to the meet the Akatsuki and all their animal glory in the next chapter! Bet you'll never guess what everyone is! Good luck, though! Hope you enjoyed the first chapter!_


	2. Take me Away

_Author's Note: Heh… . Sorry guys… Been busy with school and work, but guess what! They cut my hours and I'm on summer break! So, that means I'll be better at updating! _

_Chapter Two: Take Me Away_

_Sasori_

_Akatsuki Base_

_Same Day_

_700hrs_

_This is the _stupidest_ idea Leader has ever bought in to! _

A white panther hissed as it paced the stone floor. It made slight clinking noises as it walked, indicating that its feet were hard and not soft like a normal panther. Draped over the panther was a torn and ragged Akatsuki cloak and every joint could be seen with black lines. The panther was a puppet. His segmented tail curled above him. _At least that stayed the same… Hiruko's tail will be useful… _Sasori glared at the door. _I'm going to rip his heart out… All _six_ of his hearts!_ the panther hissed.

"Keep it down, Sasori-danna, hn! I'm trying to sleep!"

Sasori rolled his dead black eyes and turned towards his roommate, who was now considerably bigger than the panther. Sleeping on the remains of a bed was a dragon. A small one, be it, but still, a dragon! _And I got turned into a panther… A giant scorpion would have been better… _And a small dragon was still large enough to fill up at least half of the room. Deidara wouldn't be able to stand comfortably in this room once he decided to get off his lazy butt. Sasori turned to the door and wondered briefly how the dragon would make his way out of the room in the first place… _And feeding him is going to be a _pain! _I can't believe Leader agreed to this! _

Sasori hissed irritably and started leaving. "Where are you going, huh?" Deidara asked.

"I'm going to go see what Leader-sama has to say for himself! This is ridiculous!"

"It's not so bad, huh?" Deidara said as he started sitting up.

"You won't be saying that in a moment…" Sasori predicted. Deidara cocked his horned head and shrugged before attempting to crawl out of the room. "Wait!" Sasori snapped, but it was too late. The dragon made it half-way through the door before his back haunches get lodged into doorway. "I hate you…"

Deidara roared angrily and began struggling. Sasori swiftly moved to the corner of the room, hissing. "Deidara, stop it! You're going to break my body!"

The tail stopped swishing and the dragon sighed. "Sorry, Sasori-danna."

"Don't apologize! Get out of there so I can leave!"

"Easier said than done…" Deidara snapped. Sasori's attitude was rubbing off on the dragon. Sasori shrugged and began rummaging through the remains of the room until he found what he was looking for… C4. The panther picked it up in his teeth and put it near the doorway. "What are you doing, hn?" Deidara asked, but Sasori didn't bother to answer.

Once he was finished, he pulled out a detonator and pressed it. The resulting explosion, followed by the agonized scream of Deidara sent a wave of satisfaction through the panther. Sasori jumped nimbly over the rubble and the dejected dragon and he made his way to the kitchen.

There he found a pitch-black wolf with blood red eyes. "Itachi," Sasori greeted. The wolf bowed his head in greeting and turned back to whatever he was eating. Sasori laughed at how Itachi had actually managed to get whatever it was in a bowl. "Anyone else up yet?" Sasori asked.

"Kisame is," Itachi answered. "Though waking up to whatever reptile he's turned into was very odd…"

"Funny, I would have figured you would be a weasel, Itachi," Sasori muttered, not even bothering to ask what the shark-man had turned into. "And I guess Kisame isn't a shark?"

Itachi shook his head. "That would be a little bizarre, don't you think?"

"It would be funny to see him flop around," a voice snapped behind them. Sasori spun around. He cursed himself for not noticing the presence sneaking up behind them. Sasori backed away. The creature behind with was _massive_. It looked like a tiger, but only half of it was striped. The striped part was black with white stripes. The other half looked like a lion and was solid black with a white mane that only extended halfway across his head and chest. The split between the two animals happened down the face and continued the length of the body.

"What in the world?" Sasori snapped.

"A Liger, I do believe," Itachi answered calmly from behind Sasori. "Zetsu?"

"In the flesh," the hodge-podge thing said.

"This just keeps getting weirder and weirder. Leader-sama's gone off the deep-end with this one," Sasori muttered.

"You shouldn't speak such things about Nagato-sama…" Sasori rolled his eyes and turned to see a white horse. She had clear hooves and an ice blue mane and tail. Upon closer examination, it looked as if the creature was made completely out of paper.

"What is Leader-sama?" Sasori asked crossly.

"A black horse with a mane of fire," Konan answered quietly.

"Of course he is," Sasori muttered. "So, Zetsu, seen Hidan and Kakuzu yet?"

"They were out on a mission when this happened. Something about the two-tails…"

"Pein-sama wishes for you and Deidara to go after the one-tails, Sasori…" Konan whispered. "And Itachi and Kisame should go after the nine-tails in Konoha."

Itachi lifted his head and sighed. "Very well," he muttered and padded out back to his room to get Kisame.

Sasori sighed and started walking back to his room. "Good luck," the liger called. Sasori flicked his puppet-tail in acknowledgement and stalked out of the kitchen.

_Kankuro_

_Suna_

_Same Day_

_734hrs_

The morning was hot, like it usually was in the Sand village… but something was off. Everything seemed so much… bigger… A small fox lifted his head and looked around. He was black with massive ears and purple markings on his face. _What is going on?_ the fox thought as he walked towards his door. "Temari!" he called. His small paw reached up to the door and he began scratching. _How am I supposed to get out of here? _he thought. The answer came when the door opened, and in the doorway stood a bird. It was tall with a long neck and blonde plums on its head, resembling Temari's hair-style.

"Kankuro?" Temari asked, her eyes wide. The small fox nodded.

"Where's Gaara?" Kankuro asked, his eyes wide and massive ears twitching.

"Outside…" Temari answered. Kankuro nodded and ran. He was surprised how fast he could run. His tiny body was light and quick. Temari flew behind him to keep up. Kankuro skidded out the front door, which had already been broken down and halted. Outside it looked like a desert zoo. Lizards were running around, owls were flying. Other, larger animals could be seen. A sand colored cat, about the size of an average median-sized dog stopped for half a second to look at the fox and bird before slipping away into the horde of animals.

Kankuro stared stunned for a moment before shaking his head. "What happened?" he asked. Temari shook her elegant head slowly.

"I don't know…" Kankuro cursed under his breath and searched until he found a break in the earth-color tones of the fur and scales around him. There, on-top of a roof was a red Tanuki with Gaara's gourd strapped to its back. "That's him…" Kankuro called. He quickly figured out how to get on top of the building and stood beside Gaara. He looked at the tail and was shocked to find it the same shape and color of the Shukaku's. "Gaara…?"

The raccoon-dog blinked slowly and turned to the fennec fox beside him. "I do not know what has happened…" Gaara whispered. Kankuro nodded and looked down at the animals that roamed the streets. He was startled to see the wide range. Most of the animals that he saw living in Deserts or Savannas. He spotted a spot-less Cheetah walking beside a graceful gazelle. He spotted two Arab Horses pawing at the dirt as if annoyed by this. Coyotes, bob-cats and several grazing animals with a variety of horn shapes walked the streets. It looked as if the Desert had regained the land Suna had taken from it. Kankuro even spotted an Elephant wandering the streets.

"It's strange, isn't it?" Gaara asked. Kankuro tore his gaze from the scene before him to look at Gaara.

"It's only fitting that our villagers would turn into these creatures…" he reasoned. "But… why would they turn into anything?"

"I don't know…" Gaara answered truthfully. "The transformation was strange… And this whole ordeal is amazingly strange…"

Kankuro nodded. "What do we do?"

"We train. Someone may use this opportunity to attack us. We need to learn how to use these bodies. We will set up training sessions. The hoofed animals will train together and the carnivores will train together, and so on. And I want a team trying to figure this out! Send scoots to Konoha and see if they've been affected to. We need to know who are out enemies and who are our allies."

Kankuro nodded. Gaara hadn't been Kazekage long, but he was taking the position seriously and he was pleased. "Yes, Gaara-sama."

"Get the fastest animals you can find to get there! We need to know quickly what has happened!" Kankuro nodded and jumped off the building, landing lightly on the soft ground below. Gaara stayed where he was, dark eyes watching the activity below.

Kankuro ran to where he had seen the two Arab horses talking. He knew about them. They could run over the sand at high-speeds. He made a soft chirping sound to alert the two horses of his presence. He had to stop for a moment to take in the majesty of the two creatures. One was a stunning midnight blue color, so dark it was almost black, but when the sun shone on its fur just right, it became bright with color. The other one was no less stunning. This one was a dark chestnut color. Its mane was black along with the hooves and legs. Kankuro shook his head and looked at them. "What are your names?" he asked.

The black one stepped forward. "Chisoku, sir," he said.

"Kyousou," the chestnut one answered. By the sound of their voices, the black one was male and the other was female and they were not much older than Kankuro himself.

"Good. I have a mission for you Chisoku and Kyousou. Have either of you been to Konoha?"

"I have," Chisoku answered. The mare had not. Kankuro nodded.

"I need you run there are fast as you can. Get a report from Lady Tsunade and come back. Both horses nodded. Kankuro thought about how long it would take for them to make it. He figured it would still take the standard three days to make it back to Konoha and another three days back, plus a day of resting. They should be back in a week. "Go, now! We don't have time to waste. I will deal with your sensei!" Both horses nodded and lunged forward, racing out of the village. Kankuro bowed his head, praying they would be okay…

_Akatsuki_

_Somewhere in the Land of Rivers_

_Day 2, October 26_

_1300hrs_

"Are you finished yet…?"

"Almost. You can't rush these things!" A black bull snorted and turned around, waiting. It had a cloth over its mouth and a strange head-wear.

"You're lucky I can't kill you," the bull snapped. He wasn't at all startled when a black, long cat-like creature stepped out. It was thinner than a tiger, but not as thin as a cheetah. The cat blinked its purple eyes at the bull. The most stunning feature of this beast was its markings. Unlike the plain bull, the cat was anything but plain. The markings of the body looked as if you were looking at an x-ray. The white markings outlined the perfect skeleton of the cat. When it moved, the joints moved with it. At night, it looked just like a walking skeleton.

"You wouldn't kill me, Kakuzu," the cat hissed.

"No, I _can't_ kill you, Hidan," Kakuzu returned. "Something's coming…"

"I already heard it," Hidan hissed. Kakuzu snorted, but didn't say anything, What else could he say? He hated the fact that this predator had sharper senses than him. He looked up and saw two horses running at top speed towards them, a quarter of a mile to their left, heading towards the Land of Fire.

"Suna ninja, most-likely," Kakuzu speculated, but Hidan wasn't listening. He was stalking towards them. "We don't have time! We have to get the two-tails." Hidan flicked his skeletal-looking tail at Kakuzu and continued forward. The bull could do nothing but watch.

When they got close the skeletal cat launched forward, running as a speed that Kakuzu could not match. He watched as the first horse, a black one, screamed out. Both picked up their speed, but it was too late. Hidan launched himself forward and he hit the black horse head on. "Chisoku!" the brown mare shouted, skidding to a halt. The black horse kicked out at Hidan, sending him flying. But the man would not be deterred from his prey.

He recovered quickly and lunged again, and missed this time, the Black horse was running, but it was bleeding profusely on the shoulder. Hidan streaked after it, snarling and nipped at its feet. The horse kicked out again, but to no avail. Hidan grinned and lunged, this time sinking his teeth into the horses soft neck. Blood sprayed out of the severed vessel, wetting the predator.

The mare stopped and stared, wide-eyed at her partner. The black stallion was kicking out in a vain attempt of escape. "G-go!" he shouted finally. The mare whinnied and spun. It didn't take her long to get out of sight. Hidan held onto his prey until he stopped kicking and he fell limp.

"Was that necessary?" Kakuzu asked as he walked over.

Hidan looked up and nodded. "Of course," he answered. Kakuzu groaned and laid down to watch the cat perform the proper rites and rituals for every kill he made. Once finished, Hidan ripped into the belly of the horse and began gnawing on its contents. Kakuzu watched with annoyed eyes. He didn't really think all this was entirely needed, but he couldn't kill Hidan, so he had to deal with it. "What about the other one?" Kakuzu asked offhandedly.

"If you want to go after her, be my guest," Hidan answered through a mouthful of flesh.

"Not really sure it's worth it," the bull answered. "Our mission isn't to interfere with the happenings between Konoha and Suna." Hidan shrugged and bit into the shoulder of his prey. He tore off a large chunk and swallowed. Kakuzu absently began gnawing on the grass beside him.

"You know… I think Itachi's the only dog we have in the group right now…" Kakuzu observed quietly.

"So?" Hidan asked through another mouthful of flesh.

"I guess it's not really that important. Those were Arab horses, I think…"

"Are you going anywhere with this?" Hidan asked.

"Yes. They're from Suna. So, that might mean that Suna's villagers turned into desert dwelling creatures… So the animals are turning into whatever matches their climates…"

"So we're going to find birds and mountain animals in the Cloud village, big whoop. We can handle it."

Kakuzu rolled his eyes. "Never mind," he muttered. "Are you done yet?"

Hidan sighed and took another large bite out of the horse before standing. "Sure, I'm done," he said. Kakuzu stood as well and looked at the semi-eaten animal.

"I guess we can't carry it, can we?"

"We can always catch another one," Hidan said with a shrug.

Kakuzu kicked the horse as he walked by it and followed Hidan towards Kumo.

As they walked away, birds began swooping down to take their fill out of the carcass, and soon, larger animals would come, lead by the smell of blood and rot.

Thus was the cycle of life…

_Author's note: Hahahaha! Kind of short, but I wanted to make sure you guys get something today! I'm really sorry about the wait! Hopefully it won't happen again! Hope you enjoyed it!_

_I think I covered the entire Akatsuki… We'll go back to Konoha in the next chapter!_


	3. Kneel

_Author's note: Don't kill me… Please…_

_Chapter Three: Kneel_

_Hokage Mansion, Konoha_

_Day 2, October 26_

_1000hr_

A massive white and red wolf stared down at the blank pages of an open book. The wolf sniffed the book and shook his head before lifting his head to the night sky. He let out a loud howl. Echoes followed and just before they faded into silence, a chorus answered the mournful call. The old wolf lowered his head again to the white pages and nudged the book carefully. He put a paw over the book and it almost covered the entire surface. "Nothing worse than finally getting over writer's block… and then waking up with paws…" the wolf mused quietly. He smiled slightly and pushed himself to his four feet. "This will make a great book once it's over…"

"Jiraiya…?" The wolf turned his head to see a green leopard walking towards him.

"Tsunade…" Jiraiya said with a grin. "Looking beautiful as ever. I wonder what kind of damage you could do with those claws."

"Want to find out?" the cat hissed. Jiraiya flattened his ears and shook his head. He looked over the cat that stood before him. She was a golden color like her hair with green markings that mimicked her cloak. Jiraiya's own red markings were similar. He nudged a scroll that laid beside him and managed to get it onto his back. "You're leaving?" Tsunade asked, flattening her own ears. "You can't think about leaving at a time like this, Jiraiya!"

"I'll be back," the wolf promised. He went to nudge Tsunade, but the cat pulled away with a hiss. "I _will_ be back. I have to figure this out…"

"You shouldn't go alone," Tsunade muttered.

"And you should come with me?" Jiraiya laughed. "Tsunade, the village is going to be a _mess_ until this is over. You can't just leave them. I talked to Kakashi-"

"Really?" Tsunade asked. "What is he, then?"

"A lion… oddly enough," Jiraiya answered. "Anyway, he says that Naruto thinks it's the Akatsuki, and if that's true, we don't have a lot of time before they come after Naruto. I have some information that might help me find out where they are… I'll have us turned back by the end of the week!" he promised with a yip.

Tsunade laughed slightly and closed her eyes, hiding their honey color. "Be careful, you old fool," she snapped.

"Of course I will!" Jiraiya promised.

"I mean it," Tsunade muttered.

"Or what? Will you shed a tear for me, Tsunade?" he asked. "Wow… I'm honored."

"Get out of here before I _do_ show you what these claws can do!" Tsunade growled. Jiraiya scurried away with a yelp. Tsunade watched his white form leap from the balcony of the mansion to a nearby rooftop. Her eyes followed him until his white, ghostly form disappeared into the black. She sighed and looked down.

"He left his book…"

_Inuzuka Compound, Konoha_

_Day 2, October 26_

_1000hr_

"Just go…"

"But… I don't know how!"

"You sit down…"

"That's so weird! Humans are disgusting!"

"You eat your own vomit, now _go!" _

A young boy with white hair whimpered like a dog and walked into the bathroom again. A big brown dog sat beside the door. The argument had been going on for a while now and the dog knew the small child couldn't hold it any longer. "H-how's in going in there, Akamaru…?" the dog called. There was no answer. "Akamaru?"

"G-good, Kiba…" the boy answered. Kiba closed his eyes and sighed. He wasn't sure how to take care of Akamaru now. The dog turned boy had never been this difficult before… but, of course, the dog had only been human during a Fang over Fang combo and even then, he had run on all fours. This was entirely new… for both of them.

Getting the boy dressed had been fun. Kiba didn't even bother trying to teach Akamaru the proper way to eat and drink… But teaching he boy to use the toilet like a human would be one of the most important things to learn. Kiba flattened his ears and sank to his belly. He waited for several minutes, but the young child didn't reemerge from the bathroom. "Akamaru…?"

The door opened to reveal with boy, blushing and shaking slightly. "I… missed…" the child whispered. Kiba blinked and stood. He put his nose in Akamaru's small hand and sighed.

"That's all right…" he reassured the boy. He would have to get that cleaned up before his mom and sister returned home from their missions. _If they come home… _he thought sadly. "Alright… We should get you fed…" He looked the young boy over and sighed. He had no idea what to do with Akamaru. The child couldn't eat dog food or raw meat. He was human now and humans couldn't eat that stuff… and Kiba couldn't prepare him anything…

The dog jumped at the sound of a whimper. He turned his head to look at Akamaru's soft human face. It was wet with tears. "A-Akamaru! What's wrong?" The boy turned his head, suddenly ashamed. Kiba sighed and grabbed the boy's white robe, nudging him so that he knelt before the dog. Akamaru wrapped his arms around Kiba and the big brown dog put his head on his partner's shoulder. He had to remember that, in dog years, Akamaru was older and wiser… but now he was just a small child without the slightest clue what he was or how he got there…

"Hey, you'll be okay…" Kiba promised. "Don't worry about it. Nothing's going to happen to you, I promise. And nothing's going to happen to me either. We'll be okay, Akamaru… Are you hungry?"

The boy shook his head. He wasn't lying either. Kiba closed his eyes. "Do you want to go for a walk…?"

"With all those animals out there?" Akamaru asked.

"Good point…" He sighed. "We can go visit Shino…" Akamaru shook his head. Kiba was at a loss. He nudged Akamaru and stood. "Come on, we should at least try to get something in your stomach. You haven't eaten all day. You're a kid now. They have to eat more than a dog does…"

"Why…?"

"Because now you're a child and you're still growing…"

"Humans are so weird…" Akamaru muttered. Kiba laughed and pushed the little boy to his feet.

"There you go, you little baby," he said. "Come on."

_Hatake Household, Konoha_

_Day 2, October 26_

_1045hr_

"There you are!" Sakumo spun to see his son leap onto the roof of their house. "How did you get up here and you better be getting down before you kill yourself," the lion snapped.

Sakumo sighed, but didn't move. "You act like I'm a invalid or something," the wolf said.

"I'm just making sure you don't die. You're still unsteady on your four feet."

"How is everyone down there?" Sakumo asked.

"Naruto's asleep," Kakashi reported with a sigh. "Rin was able to put him down pretty easy. He was a little restless for some reason… I guess these forms come with a lot of energy."

"He is rather jittery now, isn't he?" Sakumo asked. Kakashi nodded. "Think that'll be a problem?"

"Not with Rin around…" Kakashi muttered.

"And Obito? How is he doing?"

"Good. He managed to get some meat on the stove. It didn't end too badly… How long have you been up here?"

"Three hours…" Sakumo answered quietly.

"Something bothering you? You're not usually the brooding type… We're all in the same mess you know. You don't have to hide up here…"

Sakumo closed his eyes. "It's nice, I guess."

Kakashi sighed and sank to his belly. "Dad… something's wrong… What is it?" Sakumo turned to Kakashi and smiled.

"Nothing. Just thinking! You know I do that sometimes."

"Only sometimes," Kakashi said, feeling slightly better now that his father wasn't acting so strange. Sakumo bent down and licked the man turned lion between his eyes. Kakashi sighed.

"You know, when Pakkun was born, he was such a fussy little puppy. The only way his mother could get him to settle down was to lick him between the eyes."

"Learning your parenting skills from a dog now, are we?" Kakashi asked.

"Well… I _am_ a canine now," Sakumo pointed out with a shrug. "Come on, let's get you inside. It's late and even with all this fur, it's getting kind of cold." Kakashi smiled and stood. Sakumo watched the lion for a moment. It was amazing that something with such muscle mass was able to walk as silently as Kakashi was. His feet didn't make a sound, even when he leaped from the roof and onto the ground below.

Sakumo yipped and jumped behind Kakashi, landing less gracefully than his son did. "Smooth," Kakashi teased. He nudged Sakumo to make sure his father didn't fall down and the headed towards the door, which had been left open for various reasons; one being that they couldn't close it anymore.

The two animals walked silently through the house. Obito was asleep curled up on the living room floor and Rin was asleep on one of the couches. Sakumo stayed beside Kakashi until they reached the man's bed. The lion jumped nimbly onto the bed, followed by his father. Kakashi curled up and Sakumo wrapped his body against the lion's back. He smiled at what this must look like. A lion and a wolf curling up together to sleep.

The wolf laid his head on Kakashi's and slowly began licking the cat between his eyes, just as any good parental animal would their offspring… Kakashi sighed and began purring softly. Sakumo looked down at his son and sighed. Lions didn't naturally purr, but he figured that if the fact that they were both freakish animal beings, then lions could purr all they wanted. They didn't talk either, so he shrugged and continued his licking until Kakashi's purring slowly died down to a peaceful sleep.

Sakumo stared down at his son with a sad, wistful expression. He could feel the man's heart beat… slow and steady… and he could feel his own heart beat… fast and irregular. It seemed the heart problems found in the other world followed him home. Some nights his chest didn't hurt… others it was unbearable. The old wolf sighed and closed his eyes. He put his head on Kakashi's mane. _I have enough time… _he thought sadly. _Enough time for him…_

_Somewhere in the Land of Fire_

_Day 3, October 27_

_0015 hr_

A raptor looking dinosaur turned his head to the night sky. Here and there stars winked out of existence, only to come back after a few seconds. The reptilian creature was blue and white with a massive sword on its back that was wrapped completely in bandages. The creature kicked the ground and started running, following the trail of disappearing stars. It looked up every few seconds to make sure it was following the trail that was being set for it. The stars that vanished went faster. The creature hissed and picked up its pace. _It's a good thing this body is fast…_ the animal thought.

Eventually, as the plains began to turn into forests, the trail of vanishing stars ended and a pitch black form landed gracefully before a tree line. "Must every move you make be so elegant?" the creature asked. The black animal blinked its red eyes. "Even as a wolf, you are so flat, Itachi."

"You you rather I get emotional, Kisame?" Itachi asked with another blink. "Or would you rather I break into a sonnet about how lovely the night is."

"No one mentioned poetry… and are you trying to be funny?" the reptile asked.

Itachi shrugged and turned to the tree line. "Konoha lies not far from here. We should reach it by daybreak if we hurry."

"Easy for you to say. _You_ can fly!"

"Aren't raptors supposed to be the fastest animal or something?" Itachi asked without looking at his partner.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I like to run," Kisame muttered. Itachi flicked his tail silently. "Your apathy depresses me…"

Itachi sighed and started into the forest. "If it will make you feel better, then I will not fly," he said. Kisame muttered something under his breath and followed after Itachi into the dark tree line. Neither found it necessary to speak while they walked. They knew the plan perfectly. Kisame would distract Kakashi and Itachi would take Naruto into a genjutsu. What they hadn't been planning for was coming across a massive, mini-Kyuubi, but they had ways to work around not being able to carry the boy if they needed to.

Itachi stopped suddenly. Kisame came to a halt beside his partner. "Someone's here…" he whispered. The wolf lifted his head and sniffed silently. There was a faint scent in the distance, but it was rapidly approaching them. Itachi couldn't identify the scent. It wasn't anyone from the Akatsuki. He shook his head. "Kisame?"

The reptile shook his head as well. "I don't know who it is… but there's definitely only one… Shouldn't be a problem…"

"If it's Konoha, we leave them alone," Itachi warned. "If they get away and head back, we will have more to deal with…"

"Then I'll make sure they _don't_ get away," Kisame hissed.

"We're not here to start a war…"

"You're no fun, Itachi," Kisame whined.

"Hush," Itachi hissed. The scent was closer now and the faint outline of a massive white wolf could be seen. Itachi knew that this wolf could take him, but probably not Kisame. He blinked once he could see the details of the creature clearer. "It's Jiraiya…" he whispered to Kisame.

"A legendary sannin, huh? Sounds fun."

"We can't kill him… That _would_ start a war…" Itachi pointed out.

"You're no fun," Kisame complained.

"Do you really think Pain-sama will want us to start a war with Konoha now? That would defeat the purpose of this whole mess," Itachi reasoned. "And I for one don't feel like being killed for your insolence…"

Kisame hissed, but said nothing else as the massive wolf passed within earshot of the duo. He stopped to sniff the air then shook his head and loped off towards the borders of the Land of Fire. Itachi watched him go until the black wolf could no longer see his elder counterpart. "Well, that was boring," Kisame hissed.

"At least there wasn't any bloodshed," Itachi pointed out as he stretched his stiff limbs and started again towards Konoha. Kisame walked after him, moving just as silently as the small, lean wolf before him. Neither seemed to have more to say about their adventure. They kept to themselves. Only the sound of rustling leaves broke the midnight silence.

Itachi stopped suddenly. "Kisame!" he shouted, but it was too late. A massive white wall slammed into the reptile. Kisame went tumbling back, kicking his deadly clawed feet angrily. Itachi spun and growled at the white and red wolf that now stood before them. "You are unwise to come back, Jiraiya of the Toads," Itachi snarled.

"You forget we're animals now," Jiraiya retorted. "We can smell, just as I'm sure you smelt me. The creature you are partnered with, Uchiha Itachi, gives off quite an unpleasant and strong odor."

Kisame hissed and worked himself to his feet. "Watch your mouth!" he snarled. "Can I kill him now, Itachi?" The black wolf assessed their situation and nodded slowly.

"I underestimated him…" he growled. "I won't make that mistake again. Jiraiya-sama… you obviously don't value your life as much as I thought you did, or you would not be picking of fight with the Akatsuki."

Jiraiya kicked at the earth and narrowed his eyes at Itachi. "I don't have to value my life, but I value the life of my student," he snapped. "And I will not let you go into Konoha!"

Itachi merely blinked at his opponent. He hadn't fought in this form, but was sure it wasn't much different. He could feel the chakra in his eyes and knew the Sharingan was activated. Jiraiya was twice the size of Itachi's form, but wasn't nearly as stealthy. Itachi was steadier on his feet than Jiraiya's massive form; and Kisame could disembowel both of them in one swipe. There really wasn't much of a contest.

Jiraiya howled once and hurled himself at Itachi. The smaller wolf rose to meet the larger one and they clashed like two bears. Jiraiya sank his teeth into the wolf's dark flesh. Itachi pushed himself off the ground and kicked off Jiraiya with his hind legs. The old wolf tore away from Itachi, taking a chunk of fur and flesh with him.

Itachi recovered quickly, ignoring the gushing wound in his shoulder. He lunged at Jiraiya, but instead of hitting him, he slid under the taller wolf. Once under, he stood up, arched his back and threw open his wings, knocking the wind out of Jiraiya and forcing his feet out from under him. The white wolf fell hard as Itachi scrambled out from under him. Jiraiya didn't have time to recover before Itachi bucked him hard in the jaw, sending his head back almost with enough strength to snap his neck in half. Jiraiya snarled and spun, hitting Itachi with him hip and then returning the back kick to Itachi's throat.

Both wolves glared at each before lunging, snapping and biting at one another. Blood scattered on the grass, staining the earth red as both wolves dealt damage. But Jiraiya was the elder, the bigger and the stronger. Itachi, a master of jutsu, was no master at paw-to-paw combat and his smaller size and weaker frame made him easy prey to his larger, better-built opponent. Jiraiya stood over the fallen black wolf, his fur sticky with blood. Itachi's own black fur clung to his skin. Jiraiya stepped on Itachi's black feathered wings and opened his mouth to snap the wolf's neck. "You've… miscalculated…" Itachi whispered.

Jiraiya cocked his head, but didn't have time to inquire about Itachi's comment. A large, clawed blue foot slammed into the side of his head, sending him flying backwards into a tree. Jiraiya stood slowly. He had forgotten about the partner! He snarled and looked around, but the foot came again, crushing his head. He squirmed beneath the blue creature, but was overpowered.

Kisame lifted his foot and brought it down. Jiraiya howled as the claw sliced his midsection like a steak knife through butter. He breaths came in short gasps as blood poured from the gash in his belly. Itachi limped over to them and sighed. "That was a little much…" he muttered.

"Should I kill him now, Itachi?" Kisame asked. The wolf shook his head.

"No… we should take him back… It will lure the Kyuubi-brat out, if this man was really his sensei. All Konoha ninja are the same. They wouldn't leave a comrade to die…"

"Do you think Pain-sama will be okay with that?" Kisame asked.

Itachi sighed. "As much as I hate to admit it, he did a fine number on me… I'm in no condition to infiltrate Konoha. This mission is over," he said with a quick flick of his tail. Kisame sighed and lifted Jiraiya onto his back.

"I don't see why we don't just eat him…" he muttered as the duo started back towards the base. Itachi looked at the wolf on Kisame's back. He was no longer awake and hung limp on the raptor. Itachi sighed and forced his eyes elsewhere.

_Rain Village_

_Day 3, October 27_

_0100hr_

"Nagato-sama…?" A black horse stood, staring out into the rain. Its black fur was getting drenched in the pouring rain, but by some power, the flames that made up the mane of the beast stayed lit despite the downpour. A white horse went to stand by the flaming beast, her own ice blue mane sticking to her paper-like flesh.

"What is it, Konan?" the horse asked quietly. His voice was quiet and scratchy from disuse. "Have you heard from the others?"

"Yes… I have just spoken with Itachi and Kisame. They report a capture…"

Pain turned to look at the white horse for the first time. "A capture. Is it the Jinchuuriki?"

"No, Nagato… It seems that have captured Jiraiya-sensei…"

Pain shook his head, his mane flickering with the movement. "Interesting. Are they bringing him to the base."

"Yes…" Konan answered quietly.

"I see. Then we will make our own appearance there. Come!" The black horse rose on two legs and took off. The white one merely stared after the flaming beast for a moment before taking off behind him, her clear hooves hardly making a sound in the soaked ground.

_Author's note: Wow! It's been like FOREVER people! Well, if you're still reading, sorry about that! Shouldn't happen again… I have a lot more to do with this series to just give it up! I'm glad to be back and I hope you're glad to see me! YAY!_


	4. I Stand Alone

_Author's note: See? I can update on time! BE PROUD OF ME! Or die… Slowly and painfully… Just kidding! : ) Love you guys! _

_Chapter Four: I Stand Alone_

_Akatsuki Base  
Day 3  
0900hr_

Itachi stared down at the white wolf that lay on the stone floor, his sides heaving. Pain paced back and forth, stomping the ground in annoyance, every once in a while snorting. Konan stood silently in the background, watching with an indifferent stare. "Will he live?" Pain asked angrily.

"I'm not a doctor," Itachi muttered softly. He nudged Jiraiya with his nose. The wolf's skin was hot with a fever. Itachi sighed and licked Jiraiya's wound. The taste of blood filled his mouth. The taste was bitter. _The blood is bad…_ he thought. "But I'm sure he will be fine," Itachi answered. Pain nodded.

"Good," he snapped. He rounded on Kisame. "You went overboard with him."

"I didn't know I was to capture him, Leader," Kisame defended hotly. "I thought I was to kill him!"

"Whatever! That wolf is not to die! We need him to smoke out the Kyuubi!"

Itachi turned to face Pain with a cold stare, but kept his comments to himself. Pain stomped out of the room with Konan following silently after him, flicking her tail in apology to the two animals. Itachi watched them leave before turning to Jiraiya. "It's infected," he muttered to Kisame.

"And how is that my fault?" the raptor asked. Itachi flicked his tail and Kisame snorted as he left the room, leaving the two wolves alone.

"Jiraiya-sama…?" Itachi asked, nudging the wolf. Jiraiya moaned and cracked his eyes open just a little. "How are you feeling…?"

"Been better… Yourself?" Jiraiya asked. Itachi sighed.

_At least his sense of humor is still intact…_ he thought irritably. "Can't complain," he lied quietly. Itachi seated himself before the wolf. "A lot is riding on whether you live or die… And I can't afford to let you die now."

"Really now…" Jiraiya commented. His voice was slurred with exhaustion and pain. "And why is that?"

"If I told you, then that would ruin the surprise…" Jiraiya closed his eyes. "Look, you are the bait. Naruto will come looking for you…"

"How… will he know I'm here…?"

"We have our ways. Now, if you die, we won't tell him that you're dead, so he will come anyway…" Itachi explained.

"So I am the bait and Naruto is your fish?"

"If you want to put it that way."

"Ramen might have worked better…"

"I doubt it," Itachi muttered. "The boy isn't as stupid as you say he is…" Jiraiya's side heaved, but he said nothing. Itachi stood. "Don't die, Jiraiya-sama. I don't want to have to explain to Naruto that he fell into our trap for nothing."

"You used to be one of us…"

"And then I killed my clan," Itachi countered without emotion.

"There's more to that story, isn't there?"

Itachi stopped at the doorway for a brief second. "No," he said before walking out. He turned the corner and headed to his own quarters and jumped onto the bed. _He knows nothing…_ he assured himself. _The only ones who know would keep quiet about it…_

_Oto Base  
Day 3  
0930hr_

Sasuke awoke to a loud stream of curses coming from what would qualify as a kitchen. Orochimaru and Kabuto were fighting again. It started the day before. The lion was getting more and more irritated by Kabuto's inability to do anything with hooves for hands. Their plans were slowly falling apart. Sasuke was content with his new form. He was more powerful than Kabuto and Orochimaru now… He often thought of Itachi and the animal his brother had transformed into. Sasuke's gryphon form was strong and well built. He knew now that he could defeat Itachi if his brother had been affected by this jutsu.

Sasuke stood and stretched, yawning loudly. He stalked into the kitchen area and said nothing as he dug into the store of dried meat. "Good morning, Sasuke-kun," Kabuto muttered tightly. The pale lion turned to face the gryphon.

"Sasuke…"

"Orochimaru," Sasuke greeted coolly. "I'm leaving today."

"You will do no such thing!" Orochimaru snapped.

"I will do what I please, Orochimaru. I don't need you anymore!"

Orochimaru smiled. "Of course you don't, Sasuke, but going out there in this condition-"

"Would be the best thing that's ever happened to me," Sasuke finished with a snarl. "Look at me, Orochimaru! Whatever this jutsu is has given me more power than your curse mark has! And it has invalidated any other jutsu except the Sharingan! I am a match for Itachi!"

"You need me, Sasuke!" Orochimaru snarled.

"I don't need you! Not anymore, Orochimaru-_sama!" _Sasuke retorted. "I will find Itachi and I will destroy him!"

"You think you can just leave?" Orochimaru growled.

"Yes," Sasuke hissed and started leaving.

"Follow him," Orochimaru whispered to Kabuto. "Make sure he comes back. This jutsu will end and when it does, I will need his body."

Kabuto nodded slowly. "Yes, Orochimaru-sama," he said quietly. Kabuto waited several more minutes before following after the winged creature

_Konoha  
Day 3  
1000_

Kakashi yawned deeply and stretched, expecting to feel the warmth of his father's body on his back, but all he felt was a blanket that had probably been given to him sometime during the night. The multi-colored lion blinked and looked around the small room. Sakumo was gone. Naruto, however, was curled at the foot of the bed, on floor, snoring loudly.

Kakashi sighed and leapt from the bed. "Naruto. What are you doing?" he asked, nudging the over-sized fox.

"I couldn't sleep last night…" Naruto answered truthfully.

"Do you find comfort in sleeping in my room?" Kakashi asked with a lifted eyebrow. Naruto cocked his head and whimpered. Kakashi figured that meant yes. Kakashi was well aware of the boy's nightmares. They all had them every now and again. It was a side effect from dimension hopping, they guessed. Naruto's, however, were violent and Kakashi was sure the Kyuubi was feeding off the boy's fears. Kakashi nudged Naruto's shoulder with a strange purring sound. "Don't worry about it," he said. "Do you know where my dad went?"

"He left earlier…"

Kakashi turned around to see Rin standing in the doorway. "Obito-kun went with him…" Kakashi cocked his head.

"Any idea where they went?" Kakashi asked. Rin shook her head and sat down. "Well, that's just great. Dad's missing. Who knows what will happen to him, all alone out there!"

Rin giggled. "Kakashi… Your father _is_ a competent old man you know…"

"No he's not," Kakashi teased. "He's an idiot!"

"Wouldn't he be sad if he heard you talk about him like that?" Rin asked, cocking her head.

"Only if he hears," Kakashi reasoned. "Anyway, did we find anything to eat?"

"You have some meat, yes," Rin answered.

"I want ramen," Naruto muttered.

"Naruto… I don't think your new body can process ramen."

"Curse you, logic…" Naruto growled.

"Yes, logic is your enemy," Kakashi said. "Now, would you like to come with me and try to find Dad?"

Naruto shrugged. "Sure, why not?" he asked. Kakashi nodded and lead the way out of the house.

"We'll be back later, Rin!" he called.

"I'll have something whipped up for you guys when you get back!" Rin called.

Kakashi sighed as Naruto bounded after him. "So… what do you think Iruka-sensei's turned into?" Naruto asked.

"Well… Logically speaking, I would say a dolphin," Kakashi answered.

"Wouldn't that be dangerous for him…?"

Kakashi stopped. "Hmm… Think we should check on him?"

"Yeah!" Naruto said happily. Kakashi smiled and licked to boy on the cheek without fully realizing what he had done. Naruto didn't seem fazed as he sprinted in the direction of the sensei's house.

_Nothing bothers him…_ Kakashi thought. _But still… That was a little strange… _Kakashi shrugged it off and followed after Naruto. He tried not to look at the condition the streets were in. The whole village had been torn apart in the three days since they had woken up as animals, and he was sure that it would only get worse. Confusion was settling in, but acceptance wouldn't be far apart. Already he could hear teams training with their new teams.

Kakashi stopped as a chilling bark echoed through the streets. Naruto was well ahead of him and not paying the least bit of attention to anyone. Kakashi turned around to see a green dog that resembled his own summon, Akino, sitting motionless in the middle of the street several meters behind him. The dog didn't so much as flinch. _I wonder…_ "Hey!" Kakashi greeted. The dog moved his head slightly to indicate that he had heard. "What is it?"

"I have found you for one purpose," the dog answered. "And that purpose is to tell you that Tsunade-sama has requested only your presence in her office."

"Shino…?" Kakashi asked. The dog nodded slowly. Kakashi had never seen the bug user the same after they had lost him in the other world, but he kept that to himself. "Why just my presence?"

"She didn't say. But she didn't want Naruto-kun to join you…"

Kakashi sighed and started heading towards the Hokage mansion. He would have to trust Naruto to deal with whatever he found in Iruka's apartment. He just hoped that the man hadn't been turned into a dolphin and if he had, he was in the bathtub or something. _Though he would need saltwater… _Kakashi countered himself. He tried not to worry about that as he climbed the steps to the mansion and then to Tsunade's office. "You wanted to see me?" He looked at the green leopard.

Tsunade lifted her head. "Yes… Kakashi I have some bad news…"

"If it my father?" Kakashi asked suddenly. Tsunade shook her head.

"No, I haven't seen your father today… It's about Jiraiya…"

Kakashi blinked. "What about Jiraiya…?"

"I just received word from the Akatsuki…"

"The Akatsuki is contacting us now?" Kakashi asked. "What are their demands?"

"They've been able to capture Jiraiya…"

"And they want to trade Jiraiya for Naruto?"

"Not exactly. They made no such demands…" Tsunade muttered.

"So it's a trap."

Tsunade nodded. "But you know Naruto won't see it like that."

Kakashi sighed. He knew very well that Naruto would just rush into the field without thinking. "So what are we going to do?"

"We'll send your team to get him," Tsunade said.

"Are you crazy?" Kakashi growled. "You'll be playing right into their hands if you send Naruto or anyone that they could capture to further lure him out!"

"I'm not playing into their hands," Tsunade growled. "Think about it, Kakashi. Naruto is used to fighting on all fours. He's been beast-like his entire life! He's the only one in this village that stands a chance of saving Jiraiya!" Kakashi saw her logic, but he didn't like it one bit. He wished he could just ask Tsunade to leave Jiraiya to save himself, but he didn't dare. She would surely kill him for even think about forsaking a member of their village. That and Jiraiya was one of his father's best friends. They couldn't just let him die.

"Will prepare Naruto to leave immediately."

"Kakashi…" The lion lifted his head. "I'm returning Sakura to you for this mission. I'm also assigning you two others to aid with this." Kakashi blinked. Tsunade let out a loud yowl and a small weasel-like creature stepped in. Kakashi cocked his head.

"What is that?" he asked.

"That is a foosa," Tsunade answered. "And for this mission, his name is Yamato." The creature waved his tail.

"Tenzo?" Kakashi asked. The animal nodded.

"But it's Yamato for this mission, Kakashi," Tenzo said.

"Right…" Kakashi looked up as a zebra walked into the room as well. "And this is?"

"His name is Sai," Tsunade introduced. "Danzo requested that he be teamed up with your group and the elders agreed."

"Root ninja, huh?" Tsunade nodded. "Where's Sakura, then?" he asked.

"She should be at the hospital. Go get her. Your team leaves immediately."

"But I still haven't found my father…" Kakashi muttered.

"I will send Sakumo, Obito and Rin as back-up. I want your team out as quickly as possible."

Kakashi nodded and turned to Sai and Yamato. "Meet us at the gates in twenty minutes!" he ordered. Yamato nodded and jumped onto the Zebra's back. Sai snorted and left without a word. "How is he going to get down the steps…?" Kakashi asked.

"Don't ask questions! Just go!" Tsunade growled. Kakashi nodded and ran out the door, passing the bi-colored equine as he did so. He was half tempted to stick around to watch Said try to navigate the stairs, but decided against it. He ran out of the mansion and towards the building that served as the hospital.

"Sakura-chan!" he called as he ran down the hallways. He stopped as a pink, black and white cat stepped out to greet him. He blinked. She was, in a word, beautiful. He body was as pink as her hair had been as a human. Her legs were black and her underbelly was white. "Panther?" he asked.

Sakura nodded. "And a lion for you, I see," Sakura said with a smile. Kakashi shook his head, trying to remember that this was his student and he wasn't some hormone crazed teenager. "So, does Tsunade have a mission for us?"

Kakashi nodded, blinking. "I'll… give you the briefing when we find Naruto… He should be at Iruka's…"

"Is… something wrong, sensei?" Sakura asked.

"No… nothing…" Kakashi lied. _What is wrong with me? _he wondered. "Let's get going. This mission is important!" He turned and ran out of the hospital with the panther right behind him.

_Author's note: A little short, but at least I didn't make you wait months for it! Haha! Kakashi is confused! Love him! /Glare/ Anyway, hope you enjoyed it!_


	5. Comatose

_Author's note: Guess what! I have _nothing_ to say here! This text doesn't exist… Ignore it!_

_Chapter Five: Comatose_

_Outside of Konoha_

_Day Three_

_1020_

Kakashi stared out at the group assembled. He sighed. This was a bad idea and he knew it. The Akatsuki was setting up a trap and they were walking right into it, and better yet, they were handing the prize over on a silver platter. _Maybe I'm not giving him enough credit… _he thought, but he shook his head. _Who am I kidding…? Naruto will do something stupid and get himself and the rest of us killed… I just know it…_

"Hey, sensei!" Naruto snapped, waking Kakashi up from his daydream. "What _is_ this mission?"

Kakashi sighed. He had been dreading this part. "Naruto… before I give you the mission, I need you to promise me something."

"Umm… sure…"

"It's your ninja way to _never_ go back on your word, remember?" Kakashi reminded him. Naruto nodded. "Good, now give me your word that you will _not_ freak out, do anything irrational or do anything that will generally give me a heart attack."

"I um… give you my word…" Naruto said uncertainly.

"Good. Jiraiya's been taken hostage by the Akatsuki…"

"He _what?_" Naruto shouted.

"Naruto-kun, you promised…" Kakashi reminded him. Sakura took a step forward, but Kakashi flicked his tail. "Leave him… Naruto, Sakura, these two are Master Yamato and Sai." Kakashi pointed to the two animals with his tail. Sakura greeted them with a bow. Naruto growled at them.

"We don't have time for greetings!" Naruto snapped. "We need to go after the Akatsuki!"

"Naruto, calm down!" Kakashi snapped. "We plan this out and work it rationally. I don't want you fighting unless you _have_ to. Sakura, you are in charge of keeping him as far away from the battle as possible."

"Sensei… I don't understand-" Sakura started, but Kakashi flicked his tail again, silencing her.

"Naruto, you stay out of this fight! Sai, Zebras are powerful animals from what I know. I want you in the back of the group. Yamato, I need you to stay on Sai and watch behind us. I will lead and Sakura and Naruto will flank left and right, respectively. Got it?" The animals nodded. Naruto didn't look happy, but Kakashi didn't care about the boy's feelings at the moment. He was trying to save Naruto, whether or not Naruto believed him.

Kakashi shook his head and started running. "Sensei!" Naruto shouted. Kakashi turned to tell the boy not to break formation, but he was met with a sandy wall of fur and flesh.

"What?" he snapped.

"Why can't I fight?"

"Because, Naruto, this is a trap," Kakashi explained. "A trap for _you_. They want you, not Jiraiya!"

"Why do they want Naruto…?" Kakashi turned to see Sakura's pink form flanking him. Kakashi sighed and bowed his head.

_These kids… _"Don't worry about it, Sakura," Kakashi said gently. Naruto scoffed.

"Might as well tell her," he snapped.

"Shut up, Naruto," Kakashi hissed. He was at the end of his rope. Not knowing where his father was made him on the edge, and now they were running to personally hand deliver Naruto to the Akatsuki. They were playing right into the hands of the enemy and were knowingly doing it.

Since they had returned from the other dimension Naruto had been living with Kakashi, much to the shock of everyone in the village. They had grown very close and now it felt as if he were leading his own son to his death and that hurt the man greatly.

"This is my fault!"

"No, it's not," Kakashi snapped. "Jiraiya getting kidnapped has nothing to do with you, Naruto! So please, just let me think."

"But you won't let me fight when you know that it's my fault he's in this situation!"

Kakashi rounded on the boy. "I will not let you get hurt again!" he shouted. The rest of the group halted to watch the two. Naruto's eyes flattened to his head and he whimpered.

"I can take care of myself, Kakashi." he reminded the man quietly. Kakashi growled and shook his head.

"You will do as you're told!"

"_You _are not my father!" Naruto growled. Kakashi scoffed and kicked the ground angrily, but Naruto wasn't done. "You got to keep your father!"

"Shut _up,_ Naruto!" Kakashi growled. They had all agreed not to tell anyone about the other realm and what happened there. They didn't all want to be thought of as crazy people.

"That's all we do!" Naruto snapped. "We don't tell these people anything!" He rounded on Sakura, who's eyes were wide with fear. "Look at me!" he shouted. "Look at what I am!"

"Naruto!" Kakashi snapped, but the boy went on.

"What am I?"

"A… fox…?" Sakura asked, pinning her ears to her head. She looked terrified.

"What kind?"

"A nine-tailed fox…" Sakura answered, lowering her eyes from Naruto's now red glare.

"That's why they want me! That's why Jiraiya is probably on his death bed! This whole thing is _my_ fault!"

Kakashi blinked, staring at Naruto, his eyes wide. He had never seen the boy act so violently towards Sakura. "Naruto…" he started, gently this time. The fox snarled and spun, whipping Kakashi with his tails. Kakashi fell back with a growl. "Naruto! Wake up!" he snapped. The fox turned to him, growling angrily. Kakashi stared back, keeping his own body and motions calm, praying that Naruto would calm himself.

Kakashi stepped forward, but before he could do anything, the small weasel-like creature was on top of the fox's back. Naruto howled and bucked, but after a second, a green light came from the fox's chest and he sank to his belly. Kakashi sighed. "Thanks, Tenzo…"

"Yamato," the foosa corrected quietly. Kakashi walked to Naruto and nudged him.

"Come on, Naruto, let's go…" Naruto nodded and stood groggily, whimpering softly. Kakashi felt bad for him, but said nothing to anyone. He turned to Sakura once he was sure Naruto was steady on his feet and rubbed his cheek against hers. "He'll be fine…" he promised.

"I've never… seen him like that…" Sakura whispered.

Kakashi nodded. "I know…" he said quietly. "But he won't hurt anyone… I won't let him."

Sakura nodded. "But I don't need you to protect me from him, Kakashi-sensei," she reassured him. "He won't hurt me…"

_I don't know about that… _Kakashi thought. He looked at Naruto. The fox was leaning on Sai for support, his head down. Yamato was riding on the large animal, reassuring him and apologizing for what he had done to him. _He's changing too quickly to just let this slide… _Kakashi closed his eyes. _I wonder if we should leave him behind… _But he knew that Naruto and Tsunade would both disagree with that plan. _They're both stubborn morons who won't listen to reason…_

Kakashi shook his head and followed after the rest of the group silently. Their formation was broken. Naruto was in the lead, leaning on Sai… Sakura was right behind them, keeping away from Sai's strong hooves. They were in a line. Kakashi didn't like that, but he didn't have any way else to do this. Sai was the only one strong enough to support Naruto's now weakened form. Kakashi hoped he snapped out of it soon. If they ran into an Akatsuki now, Naruto would be in a lot of trouble.

"How's he doing up there?" Kakashi called after several minutes.

"He's fine," Sai answered quietly. "He just looks a little sick."

"The effects of the jutsu will wear off soon," Yamato reassured them.

"How is it that you can still do jutsu…?" Sakura asked, mirroring Kakashi's own question. Yamato shrugged.

"Dunno… Guess it has something to do with my Wood Element," he said with another shrug. "And my paws are more hand-like, so I guess I can still perform hand-signs."

"It's a good thing you can still do that, Yamato-senpai," Sai said. "We might have been in trouble if Naruto-kun here had decided to continue getting angry…"

Kakashi winced when Naruto flinched, but then gave no farther reaction to Sai's words, much to Kakashi's relief. Kakashi trusted Sai to get them to where they were going and he started to focus on the duties of the person in the back of the group. He made sure to keep his eyes and ears out for anyone coming from any direction. Naruto wasn't in any condition to keep the group safe in the front and while Yamato was well trained for this, he was trying to make sure the jutsu didn't have any lasting damage on the fox. No one else seemed concerned for the mission itself.

Kakashi could tell that Sakura was shaken by Naruto's outburst. He had also given her a lot to think about. Kakashi sighed and ran to catch up with her. "Sakura… It's time you learned about Naruto," he said quietly. Sakura nodded, catching the hint and fell back so that Naruto couldn't hear them. _Where does one start with something like this…? _"Well… There are these things we call 'Tailed-Beasts'." he started. "They are these monstrous beings made of pure chakra… And there are nine of them, each with a certain number of tails… They're power and strength grow with the number of tails, the one tail being the weakest and the nine-tails being the strongest…"

Sakura's ears flattened to her head. "What were they used for…?" she asked.

"Well, in times of war, they would try to harness the power of the Tailed-beasts… by putting them into the bodies of ninja." Sakura gasped. Kakashi nodded. She was understanding. "Naruto was sealed… with the Nine-Tails…"

"And the Akatsuki…?"

"They want the vessels so that they can extract the beast from inside them."

"What happens to the vessels if that happens…?" Sakura asked. Kakashi bowed his head. He heard Sakura whimper and figured she guessed it. "I won't let that happen to Naruto-kun," she declared.

"He would be pleased to know you care for him that much," Kakashi commented.

"He has a lot of people that care for him" Sakura said. "He's just that kind of person, you know…"

"Yeah… I know…" Kakashi whispered. He sighed and walked faster, leaving Sakura to ponder his words and what she had learned. He didn't like dumping something like that on her, but it would help her understand the mission better… It was better for her to know about Naruto and everything that led up to this mission. _Now that she knows, she will be able to help cover Naruto… This mission isn't just about saving Jiraiya… We're going to show the Akatsuki that we are a force to be feared. They'll think twice about attacking Konoha next time… _

_Akatsuki Base_

_Day Three_

_2000hrs_

"They will be here soon, Nagato…" The massive black and red horse turned to the other horse as she walked in quietly.

"They must have come quickly. Who is here tonight?"

"Itachi and Kisame are still here… And Zetsu."

"Is that it?" Pain asked. Konan nodded slowly.

"Sasori, Deidara, Hidan and Kakuzu aren't back yet, I guess," Pain said quietly. Konan shook her head. "That's fine. The force we have today should be more than enough."

"Will you get the other bodies out, Pain?" Konan asked.

"No… It's not worth revealing them just yet. It's just a small patrol, right?"

"Itachi just reported back. He said that it's only five of them, including the fox brat."

Pain stomped his hoof on the ground and nodded. "Perfect. They are walking right into this trap like lambs to the slaughter."

"On the contrary, leader-sama," Itachi started, stepping into the room. "Konoha wouldn't walk right into a trap this obvious without a plan."

"Are you defending them, Itachi?" Pain asked.

"Of course not, Leader-sama… I just don't want such an excellent plan to go to waste because you are underestimating Konoha," Itachi reasoned. "They are experts at strategy and I doubt that they are fully unaware that this is a trap."

"No one willingly steps into a trap, Itachi."

"A mouse will spring a trap to get the prize if it is smart enough to understand the mechanism behind it…" Itachi countered quietly.

Pain snorted. "You are wise beyond your years, Itachi… But are you sure you still don't feel a bias towards Konoha?"

"I do not hold them in any place in my heart, Leader-sama," Itachi said evenly, his voice cold and flat. Pain shook his head.

"You are right, Itachi… But I assure you that I have a plan that is better than their plan." Itachi snorted and stood. "Where are you going?"

Itachi didn't stop. "To get ready for this plan of yours."

Pain watched Itachi go. "He's an odd one…" he commented without care.

"He is useful, though," Konan said. Pain nodded slowly. Neither spoke for quite some time. Pain was plotting. He didn't want to have to pull any tricks on the Konoha ninja just yet. In a perfect world, he wouldn't have to fight at all. He could just sit back and watch the rest of them fight. He looked over at Konan and watched as the paper horse began to peel away, layers at a time, until she was just a floating mass of white sheets. The sheets then began to form together again, and when they did, a white lioness with ice blue paws and tail and ear tips stepped out.

"Lovely," Pain observed. He bent his head to touch her, rubbing his cheek against hers. Konan let out a soft growl that could have been mistaken as a purr and then stepped back.

"Wouldn't a horse form be more useful in a fight?"

"You would be at a disadvantage with that many," Pain explained. "You can't turn around fast enough to attack if they get you on the sides. It would be best for you to fight in this form, Konan…"

"Yes, Pain-sama," Konan whispered.

"Now, go ahead and get ready. Don't let them get close enough to know exactly where our base is. The Nine-tailed brat is to remain alive, but slaughter the others if you must. Once they are finished, we will kill Jiraiya and return his and their bodies to Konoha for a proper burial." Konan said nothing as she slipped out of the room and into the dark corridor.

_Outside the Akatsuki Base_

_Day Three_

_2010hr_

Kakashi stared into the forest. The sun was setting and he didn't like that they didn't get here before nightfall. He wanted to wait until morning, but without a doubt, the Akatsuki knew they were there and would not let them get a night's rest after running all day to make it there. "So, what's the plan, Kakashi-senpai?" Yamato asked. Naruto was more alert now, his ears up and listening for anything. Kakashi had Sakura in a tree, watching to any of the Akatsuki.

"There isn't much of one…" Kakashi admitted. "We don't know what animals are in there, if they are animals at all. I know Sai is probably the only one that can carry Jiraiya out of here. He's a pretty big wolf…" Sai nodded, ready to become a carrier. Kakashi sighed and looked at Naruto. "We don't know how many are in there… You can fight, Naruto, but only if you promise not to be led away from us!"

"I promise," Naruto said with a nod. Kakashi sighed. He didn't know how true to the promise the boy would be, but at least he had gotten Naruto to promise something.

"Alright! Let's get this over with!" Kakashi lifted his tail to signal the group into an attack, but never got the chance. A black and white blur dashed before him and rammed into his side, sending him sprawling backwards with a hard hit. "Go!" Kakashi shouted, jumping to his feet. Sai nodded and dashed forward, Yamato on his back to aid with anything they might find inside the base itself. Kakashi turned to face the black and white creature and gasped.

It was split in two; a black lion and a white tiger. Kakashi hissed, trying to not get distracted by the beast before him. He pawed the ground and assessed his situation. The creature was massive… even bigger than Naruto, making him much bigger than Kakashi. _I'll just have to use cunning to beat out brute strength. _Kakashi thought. He gasped as the best began to split in half. The black side stayed while the white lunged into the trees. It was disgusting, to say the least, but Kakashi tried not to think about what the white side was doing. _Sakura will have to take care of herself… This is going to take all my attention… _

He lunged at the black creature before him, trying not to look at the scarred and hairless side that was once the white half. The creature roared and met Kakashi's attack with his own. Kakashi was thrown back by the animal's brute force. _He's going to kill me! _Kakashi thought, his eyes wide. Before he had a chance to get up, the animal was on top of him again. Kakashi kicked out, trying to dislodge the animal.

With a howl, the black creature rolled away from Kakashi. His back legs had connected to the soft underbelly of his opponent and blood stained both of them. Kakashi quickly looked around. He noticed Naruto fighting white looked like a black, winged wolf. He seemed to be winning against the wolf but Kakashi noticed a blue thing streak through the trees towards the fight. _Back up! "_Naru-" he called, but his warning cry was cut off as a black hoof slammed into the side of his jaw. His head snapped back with a sickening crack and he lay still where he fell, stunned and panting.

His first thought was that his neck had been broken. He could no longer feel his legs… but after a moment, he realized that he could feel them tingling. _I'm not paralyzed, _he thought with relief… but when he tried to move them, he couldn't. It would take awhile for feeling to return to them. _But I don't have that kind of time! _he thought frantically. He could hear Naruto's desperate cries. The blue thing had made it to the fox and was probably winning the fight. Kakashi struggled again.

"Stay down," a voice hissed. Kakashi lifted his eyes to see the black creature standing over him. There was no sign of the horse that had dealt the kick to his face. The creature opened is misshapen mouth to bite through Kakashi's throat. The lion let out a warning growl, but he knew he couldn't back it up.

Before the teeth entered his flesh, the black creature was thrown back. Kakashi lifted his eyes to see a white wolf in a green vest standing over him. Blood dripped from the wolf's mouth. Kakashi noticed a gash in the black creature's shoulder. "D-dad…?" Kakashi asked.

"Don't worry, son… We got this handled…" Kakashi sighed and closed his eyes, listening to the sound of Naruto's horrific cries as they faded into soothing darkness.

_Author's note: Mwahahahaha! Cliff hanger! I win! _


	6. Angel with a Shotgun

_Author's Note: Hahahaha! Fear the next chapter of female leads! You will LOVE it!_

_Chapter Six: Angel With a Shotgun_

_Outside the Akatsuki Base_

_Day Three_

_2020_

Sakumo looked down at his son and sighed. The lion was out cold, but he didn't have time to deal with his son. He was facing a strange black creature and a flaming black horse. Naruto's cries were getting weaker, but as Sakumo thought of running to him, Obito streaked passed him towards the fox's battle. "Rin!" Sakumo ordered "Get Kakashi off the field and treat him if you can!"

Rin nodded and began dragging Kakashi's body off to the side. That done, Sakumo turned to face the two animals. Sakumo noticed that the odds were against them… but he wasn't going to let that stop him. One look over at his son was enough to fuel his will to fight. The horse looked mildly amused that the medium-sized wolf was going to attempt to take on both of them. _We should have brought more backup… _Sakumo thought. _Nothing we can do about it now, I guess. _

Sakumo dropped into a ready stance and the horse pawed at the ground, snorting. Sakumo watched each black creature with his eyes narrowed. He was trying to figure out which animal he would have to watch out for the most. The black creature was massive but not very light on his feet and the horse couldn't creep like a cat or a wolf. The cat thing was the more dangerous of the two. Sakumo nodded and lunged at Zetsu.

The lion-like creature lunged in return, growling angrily. Sakumo met the animal with as much force as he could muster. He fell back and then quickly rolled to avoid a deadly blow by the massive claws of the animal. Sakumo ducked quickly and then lunged at Zetsu's hind legs, clamping down on them with strong jaws. Zetsu screamed and brought his clawed paw down on Sakumo's back, forcing the wolf to let go as he fell down with the paw to avoid severing his spinal column.

_This brute's good! _Sakumo thought as he rolled away from Zetsu. He growled and jumped back another foot. _And he's bigger than me… _Sakumo howled as he jumped to avoid flaming hooves. Pain snorted as he missed his target, but it didn't seem to bother him too much. He just shook his head and stepped back. Sakumo narrowed his eyes and looked around. Obito was battling a black wolf while a raptor was dragging Naruto's broken and bleeding body away. Obito was winning his fight, but they would still lose Naruto was this rate. The wolf was doing a good job of holding the tiger off.

Sakumo gulped and spun around. The black creature he had been fighting was gone and somewhere in the trees a cat screeched in pain. _We've lost… _he thought sadly. He gulped and looked towards where Rin had disappeared with Kakashi. _I'm sorry, Kakashi… but you are more important to me. _

"_Retreat!" _

_Outside the Akatsuki Base_

_Day Three_

_2029_

Pain watched the animals flee into the woods. He had called off the attack once the white one had sounded the retreat. He didn't find it necessary to waste time to kill them. He sighed and turned towards where Kisame was hauling the fox into the base. The boy was much bigger than he had originally imagined, but it was a minor miscalculation. His team had been successful and kidnapping the child. "We begin immediately." he announced.

"With all due respect… We're exhausted," Itachi muttered, limping over to his leader.

"Konoha will not wait for you to lick your wounds, Uchiha," Pain snapped. He stomped the ground and spun around. He caught a glimpse of Konan stepping out from her hiding spot and offering Itachi an apologetic look before following in her leader's hoof prints.

Pain ignored her sympathy towards the other members as he walked into the base. He sighed deeply and pushed his way into the main room with the massive statue. He took a deep breath. _The Kyuubi was the biggest challenge, _he reminded himself. _And we have it. The rest will be easy._

With a shake of his flaming mane, Pain turned to greet Kisame as he hauled Naruto towards the statue. "Good, good… We must contact the others quickly. We mustn't lose any more time. It won't be long before Konoha brings more ninja to attack us." Kisame nodded and dragged Naruto's body under the statue, leaving a trail of blood in his wake. The fox did not stir.

"Something wrong, Itachi?" Pain asked, looking over at the wolf. He was looking at the trail of blood with his ears pinned to his head and his tail tucked between his legs.

"Nothing, Leader-sama," Itachi whispered. Pain snorted as he watched the wolf hop up to his place on the statue.

"He is loyal, Pain." Konan whispered, moving to stand beside the black horse.

"I don't doubt that," Pain answered with a flick of his fiery tail.

"Of course, Pain-sama." The white horse walked silently towards her perch on the statue, balancing herself perfectly on the hand. Pain closed his eyes and went to his own spot. A moment later hologram-like images formed on the remaining fingers.

"Let us begin…"

_Near the Akatsuki Base_

_Day Three_

_2100_

"They're not back yet…" Sakumo muttered. Obito was busy licking his own wounds, but nodded at the wolf's words. He was just as concerned about Sai and Yamato as Sakumo. Rin was still trying to wake Kakashi.

"What do you suppose we do?" Obito asked.

"We continue with the plan. We return with Kakashi and come back. The jutsu they use to extract the beasts takes a very long time, if I remember correctly…" Sakumo explained. "We should have time to quickly head back to Konoha and come back with reinforcements."

"That would give us a very small window of time to save Naruto…" Rin pointed out in-between licks on Kakashi's wounds. "And we might not make it back in time… Who knows how long it will take to gather a team together…"

"We've already sent Sakura ahead to warn Tsunade about this defeat. We can't risk anyone's life on this," Sakumo snapped. "No one here will be able to infiltrate without back up. We're all injured."

"I'm not," Rin said quietly. "I can go in."

"If you get hurt, Kakashi will have my head," Sakumo argued.

"And I can't let you go in alone," Obito pointed out. Rin sighed. "Besides, Kakashi needs a medic more than anything."

"He's stable," Rin reasoned quietly. "He will be able to make it back to Konoha safely if you two are careful with him, that is."

Sakumo sighed and looked towards the base. He didn't like the idea… but the idea of losing Naruto and the Kyuubi to the Akatsuki was more daunting than letting Rin go at it alone. Rin closed her eyes. "You know I can do this, Sakumo-san…"

"I know you can…" Sakumo whispered.

"Then let me…"

Rin watched as Sakumo and Obito exchanged looks and then Sakumo nodded finally. "Alright… We will take Kakashi home to Konoha and let you infiltrate alone. Find Sai and Yamato and send Sai home with Jiraiya if he's still alive. We will return as quickly as possible with reinforcements. But make sure you and Yamato stop that jutsu. We can't lose Naruto."

"Yes sir…" Rin dipped her head and then took off towards the base, fully aware of the eyes burning into her flesh.

It didn't take her long to navigate into the base itself. The Akatsuki was too busy to guard their entrances and defend their bases. _Maybe this won't be so hard… _the girl turned cat thought hopefully, knowing it was never that easy. She lifted her nose and tasted the air, picking up the traces left behind by the zebra and foosa that has passed before her. Without giving herself time to think about the task ahead, Rin bounded forward, following the trail.

Jiraiya was out cold when she finally found him. Sai was standing, frozen in fear, in the corner of the room and Yamato laid in a pool of his own blood. Rin quickly took in the details of the event. Apparently one Akatsuki member had stayed behind in the base and had taken on the two infiltrators. Sai, being a prey animal, had taken to freezing when he couldn't flee or fight. Yamato has fared better mentally, but not physically. He had tried to fight and had been left for dead afterward.

Rin quickly went over to the captain and sniffed him. _Still alive. _She turned to Sai and looked him over. Whoever had dealt the blows to Yamato had left Sai completely intact. Rin walked over to the frightened horse and nudged him. "Sai…" she purred gently, trying to sooth him. "We need to get these two to Konoha… Do you think you can make it?" Sai slowly moved his wide black eyes to Rin and nodded slowly. He knelt so that she could haul Jiraiya and Yamato onto his back. "Go quietly and carefully. Meet up with Sakumo-san and Obito-kun if you can." Sai nodded and took off into the corridors of the base.

Rin watched him go for a moment before turning away and heading towards the scent of fox-blood, keeping her head in the air in order to keep the scent close to her. She knew that she should have gone with Sai and regrouped since the plan wasn't going quite as well as she thought it would, but she kept going forward. She was acutely aware of their limited window of time to save Naruto and she also knew the kind of pain Kakashi would go through if they lost the boy to the Akatsuki.

_That's why I can't fail, no matter what, _Rin thought, nodding at the thought. She wouldn't let Kakashi lose the boy he had considered to be his son.. and one that she might have begun to consider a brother.

The winged cat stopped at the entrance to the main cave where the jutsu was being performed. She scanned the area. Not all of the forms performing the technique were solid. _That makes it a little easier… But how do I stop it? _she thought. She had no idea how to stop the jutsu. The most logical idea she could come up with was to take down the leader which seemed to be the flaming horse.

The ca spread her wings slowly, stretching her feathers. _Well, boys… _she thought. _Hope you don't worry too much about me. _She let out a long silent sigh and took to the sky…

_Author's note: SSOOO short! But it was either do a tiny chapter and get it done, or do a MASSIVE chapter because once this fight starts, I can't split it into 2 different chapters, so I decided to leave you with yet another cliff hanger! GIRL POWER! Because the females don't get enough love in this series. _


	7. Move to This Phenomenon

_Author's note: Hey guys! I'm so sorry this took forever to get, but I had back surgery and I was recovering from that! Hope you don't hate me!_

_Chapter Seven: Move to This Phenomenon_

_Akatsuki Base_

_Day Three_

_2130_

She was going unseen… for the time being. _That won't last long… But that's okay… They need to know I'm here. _She hovered at the top of the cave for several moments, taking in the whole situation. Not all of her opponents were solid figures and she figured that if that was the case, then this might be slightly easier.

With a shake of the cat's majestic head, Rin dove at the black flaming horse. The impact stunned her. Pain's horse form was a wall of solid, hard muscle. Both creatures plummeted towards the ground. The black, winged wolf stood and went to lunge forward, but thought better of what he was doing. Rin tried quickly to slow her fall with her wings, but she was still stunned from the hit. Both animals fell to the hard stone floor with a loud thud. Rin's world exploded into a break white light that slowly faded to black.

When her vision cleared the entirety of the Akatsuki was staring down at her. The strange Liger-like creature paced in the back, licking his lips. Pain too was struggling to his feet beside her. "This is their offense?" Konan asked. "She's very young."

"Kill her," Pain snorted. "We can't afford another interruption like this!"

"Is something wrong, hn?" Deidara's hologram asked.

"Nothing we can't handle…" Zetsu hissed, stepping forward. Pain stepped away from the cat creature and nodded. Zetsu let out a thrilled snarl and lunged for the winged cat.

Rin moved quickly. She swiped at the beat coming towards her, catching him in the cheek. He there wasn't a lot of force behind her blow; definitely not enough to unbalance the animal. Zetsu's path was not deviated from. Rin was thrown back. she felt one of her wings give way when she rolled on the stone. The cat bit back a yowl of pain as she twisted in order to stand up. Zetsu wasn't going to let her get away that easily. He charged with the brown cat charging towards him. Before their course came to an end, Rin leapt into the air. She kicked off the top if the disfigured creature's head and took to the sky, thankful that her wings had not been broken.

Zetsu howled in fury as he struggled with a now bleeding nose resulting from hitting the stone floor. As he tried to regain his composure the blue and white horse ran towards him and jumped into the air. Paper flew around her until they shaped themselves into giant wings. Rin cursed and propelled herself higher in the cave while the now-Pegasus tore after her.

Once at the top of the cave, Rin flipped around and put her paws on the roof. Konan reared back, but wasn't able to change her path in time. Rin shoved off the roof and slammed, head first, into the waiting horse. Konan exploded into thousands of sheets of paper. Pain neighed furiously. His mane and tail exploded in fury, rising the temperature in the cave. Rin landed on top of the statue. _I can't keep this up too much longer, _she thought. There was no way she could take on all of them. Even as she thought, the horse was reforming herself into a massive snake. Rin snorted and closed her eyes. _Sorry, Kakashi… _

The cat let out another loud yowl and lunged for the flaming horse. As she slammed into him, his black body suddenly burst into flames, sending her flying back, burned and dazed. The horse snorted and started towards the stunned cat.

A loud screech echoed through the chamber as a blur of pink hurled itself at the charging horse, changing his course enough to give Rin the time she needed to get her bearings. "Sakura?" she called.

The panther turned to the brown cat with a smile. "Sakumo-san sent me back with Sai caught up with us. I was the only able body left." Rin chuckled and stood beside the muscular girl.

"They won't go down easy," she said.

Sakura nodded. "I didn't think so; but that's okay. I wouldn't have it any other way!"

"You were definitely trained by Kakashi," the cat commented and pawed at the ground. The Akatsuki turned to meet their opponents. "Watch out for the snake. She can change into anything." Sakura nodded. "I don't think the wolf is going to be much of a problem. Sakumo-kun gave him quite a beating."

Pain snorted. "Your fight is futile… You _will_ die here."

"No harm in trying," Rin said with a hiss. She knew what Pain knew; they were no match for a group this size. However, they could at least take one or two with them. Pain reared in the air and the Akatsuki charged. Rin nodded at Sakura and the two large felines ran at their opponents.

Rin crashed with the giant snake, latching her claws and teeth in the papery, scaled flesh. Konan let out a hiss of pain and began thrashing in order to dislodge the hitchhiker from her body. Rin held fast on her target until Konan slammed herself into the stone floor, finally making Rin remove herself from the snake.

Rin rolled away from the shape shifter as she burst into paper again, this time changing her shape into that of a large wolf with ice blue points. Rin shook her head. _How do you beat something like this?_ she though desperately. She dared to take a glance at Sakura, who was tangled with the reptilian creature. She was doing well, being lighter and more nimble than the creature. Rin shook her head and turned her attention to the task at hand. The now-wolf lowered her head, snarling at the cat that dare challenge her.

Rin could feel her body shaking. _Doesn't she get tired…? _she asked herself, but there was no time to ponder this. The wolf howled and lunged. Rin quickly got out of the way and lunged again at Konan's side. The wolf growled and turned quickly, clamping her jaws around Rin's throat. The cat yowled as blood poured from her mouth and around the maw of the white wolf.

Rin went limp and was dropped on the cold, stone floor with blood steadily pouring from her punctured throat. Konan stood over her. Rin blinked and when she opened her eyes, it was a horse that was staring down at her, a sad look on her face. The cat let out a soft sigh and closed her eyes.

_Akatsuki Base_

_Day Three_

_2200_

_"Get up… I said get up!" The sound of water sloshing around should have alerted him that something was wrong… Naruto opened his orange eyes to a dark room with red walls and water lapping against him and the wall. "You're awake."_

_Naruto stood groggily and stumbled backwards. "Who's there?" The voices didn't sound like the Kyuubi. It sounded like him, only deeper. A figure stepped forward. Naruto jumped back. There was a fox standing before him, but it wasn't the Kyuubi. This nine-tailed beast was black as night with deep red points, and glowing red eyes. "What are you?" _

_"I am you…" the dark fox snarled. Naruto shook his head. "You don't believe me…"_

_"I've never seen you before," Naruto countered, trying his best to keep himself calm._

_"That group tried to remove our fox. You weren't doing a good job of protecting us, so I had to step in. Don't you want to live…?" Naruto whimpered and bowed his head. "Come now… I know you're afraid to die…" The black fox moved forward and ran a tail across Naruto's chin. Naruto growled and jumped back. _

_"Don't… don't touch me…" he growled._

_"Wake up, you fool! That group will kill us if you don't get up!" Naruto blinked. "GO!"_

The fox opened his bright orange eyes. His body felt numb and heavy, but he could move. He stood slowly, awaking to a fight. The winged cat was lying in a pool of her own blood and the pink panther was weaving around a large reptilian creature. The others animals in the room were watching the fight with mild interest, no one moving to help the blue creature.

Naruto didn't make a sound as he checked every bone in his body. Nothing was broken. His stomach felt like it had been burned around the seal, but other than that, he felt okay. He remembered the black fox in his mind and shook his head. _Thanks for waking me…_ he thought. But even he knew how hopeless this fight really was. He was injured, Rin was probably dead and Sakura couldn't keep her pace very long. He could feel the Kyuubi stir, wanting to get out and destroy, but Naruto held it back. He didn't know what would happen if he lost himself to the beast in this form.

Naruto wasn't one to make plans, but he knew that if he didn't try to make some sort of plan, people were going to die. He winced as a cat screech tore through the cave. "Sakura-chan!" Naruto called. He regretted it instantly. Pain spun around.

"He's awake!" he howled. The fighting stopped. Naruto's ears flattened against his head as the animals ran towards him. Naruto snarled, spun and ran.

_Think! Gotta think! _he thought as he slid around the stone arms of the statue. He found thinking to be very difficult at the moment. He lunged towards the wall and pushed off, colliding with the black and white monstrosity called Zetsu. Naruto, however, was a big fox and he actually dislodged the beat from its path. Naruto gained the upper hand this time, but not for long. As he went in for the kill, the blue reptile got behind him and grabbed his tails.

Naruto howled and whipped around to bury his teeth in Kisame's shoulder, forcing him to let the fox go as he screamed in pain. Naruto spun around, but was surrounded. Pain merely looked down at his prey with an amused expression on his cold face. "Your resistance, Naruto-kun, is amusing, but ultimately futile," he said simply. He walked up to the fox and reared, ready to bring his hooves down on Naruto's head.

They never found their mark. Pain screamed as a very light purple winged horse rammed its blue horn into the black animal's side. Naruto blinked. The creature that had been a wolf seconds before lunged as a lioness at this new player. The horse bucked wildly, sending the white and blue cat flying across the cave. Zetsu moved in this time and Naruto took the lead, lunging and crushing the creature beneath him. He bit down on the tiger side of the beast, avoiding the lion's mane, and lifted him. It was with great difficulty that he was able to throw Zetsu, and he couldn't even throw the Liger too far, but it was far enough.

Naruto ran to the mythical horse's side. "Are you hurt, Naruto-kun?" the animal asked. Naruto shook his head, lying through his teeth. Kisame rushed towards them, but was stopped by a pink blur. _Looks like Sakura's back in the game. _That just left Itachi. The wolf bowed his head and sat where he was, knowing when he was defeated. Pain stomped his hoof on the ground, but didn't move to attack the three ninja. Sakura ran to Rin's side and began tending to her wound.

"Well Uzumaki… Consider yourself very lucky… But you won't be next time…" The horse reared and the animals from the Akatsuki followed him out of the base. Naruto smiled and his legs collapsed underneath him. He hit the floor hard.

"N-Naruto-kun!" the horse shouted. "Sakura-chan!"

"Pick him up, Hinata," Sakura called.

_So… that's who it is…_

Hinata nodded slowly and looked down at Naruto. She lowered herself to her belly. "C-can you st-stand, Naruto-kun…?" she asked shakily. Naruto nodded and got up on shaking legs. He weakly pulled himself up on the horse, avoiding her feathery wings. Hinata stood as Naruto buried his muzzle into her dark blue mane. "Is Rin-san all right?" Hinata asked quietly.

"She'll be fine," Sakura answered. "Come on… Let's get out of here before they decide to come back." Hinata nodded and followed quickly after Sakura.

"That… wasn't so hard…" Naruto gasped.

"Shut up, idiot," Sakura snapped. "We got lucky. They're not used to their animal forms and fighting without jutsu. We won't be so lucky next time… So make sure there _isn't_ a next time!"

Naruto flattened his ears. "Aren't you glad that I'm not hurt , Sakura-chan?"

Sakura let out a soft purr. "Of course I am, moron," she whispered affectionately. Hinata shifted uncomfortably. Naruto patted her back with his tail as the group moved forward. He closed his eyes and finally allowed himself to pass out.

_Konoha_

_Day Four_

_0800_

Kakashi stood at the gates, staring out into the zoo that used to be the Village Hidden in the Leaves. The sun was probably far up in the sky by now, but a storm was coming and it was blocked out by the ominous dark clouds. He sighed deeply and closed his eyes. "Something wrong?" The lion didn't bother to look.

"Just sighing," Kakashi answered as his father sat beside him.

"That sigh is too deep not have meaning. The mission was a success, Kakashi. Naruto is alive, as is the rest of the team," Sakumo said, somewhat confused by his son's actions.

"Naruto and Rin are both in the hospital… Sakura risked her life for the mission while I slept."

"You almost snapped your neck. You risked your life like the rest of them. They'll all be okay. Tsunade-sama saw to that…"

Kakashi licked his paw and ran it through his mane. "I don't know, dad…" he muttered. "This is all just… stressful…" Sakumo reached up and bit his son's ear gently. "Ow! Dad!"

"Kakashi… this is stressful for everyone. You can't just let this beat you. So you had a bad mission… everything worked out just fine," Sakumo said. He nudged his son. "Come on. Cheer up."

Kakashi sighed and laid down beside his father. Sakumo ran his tail over the lion's back. "This is still weird…" Kakashi muttered, lowering his head to his paws. Sakumo laughed quietly.

"Just a little…" he whispered. He laid beside Kakashi, still moving his tail to pet his son's back. "But I could get used to it if I tried…" he muttered. Kakashi nodded and closed his eyes. "Don't worry, Kakashi… As long as I live, I won't let anything happen to anyone in this family…"

_Land of the Rice Fields_

_Day Four_

_0800_

Kabuto looked up at the sky. Sasuke was weaving in and out of cloud layers, practicing his flight patterns. The horse had to admit that the mystical beast was getting quite good with those wings. The storm was quite close here and lighting struck the fields. The Gryphon moved between the frequent strikes that both went to the ground and jumped between the black clouds. Kabuto didn't like how close the storm was to breaking. He knew he would feel safer if he was in the trees not too far away, but he had been ordered to follow Sasuke and not lose sight of him.

With a massive crack of thunder the sky broke. Kabuto looked around. For a second he couldn't find Sasuke. He had a vision of the Gryphon, wings soaked and waterlogged, plummeting towards the earth and crashing. While Kabuto wouldn't have minded Sasuke shattering every bone in his body, he knew Orochimaru would make a meal out of him if he let that happen… and now that his master was a lion, that threat seemed all too real at the moment.

He strained his eyes until he spotted the creature landing in the tall grass not far from him. Kabuto didn't have any doubt that Sasuke knew he was here. He blinked as something rose from the grass. The horse whinnied and backed away. Sasuke was human again! He shook his head. _That's impossible!_ But there he was, his chest bare, and Kabuto could only imagine what else was bare beneath the grass. Sasuke smiled and stretched and with his arms came two massive black wings, the Sharingan on the inside of them as they were in the Gryphon form.

Sasuke lifted his head and arched his back, running his hands through his raven hair before letting it fall flat on his head, the signature spikes saturated in the rain. Lighting flashed near both beings in the field, but neither flinched. Kabuto turned away as the now winged humanoid being leapt into the air and again began weaving his way through the lightning.

_There's still so much of this jutsu we don't know… _the medic thought. _And it seems to me that Sasuke's progressing… Faster than Orochimaru and I would like…_

_Author's note: Hahaha! There it is! You people better like it! I spent forever on it! And a little fan service for all you Sasuke fans out there! And a little for all those people who like the "fluffy" moments.  
_


	8. Iridescent

_Author's note: AHH! I went back to work and college is a killer! I'm sure finals will be over by the time I'm done with this chapter! I will try to update every week during my summer break, how's that?_

_Chapter Eight: Iridescent _

_Konoha_

_Day Five_

_0700_

"_We have a problem…"_

"_Isn't this a treat…?" Naruto snapped. "You hardly ever call me."_

"_This is an emergency," the fox hissed. His miniature shook his head in annoyance. _

"_Let me sleep…"_

"_You don't get it! We have the advantage!"_

"_I don't care!" Naruto shouted. The Kyuubi narrowed his eyes at the boy. _

"_Why are you angry?" the fox snapped back. He was ready to argue with anything at the moment. He was frustrated with all of this. Here was his vessel that used to be a boy and now was in his natural form. _

"_Why do you think?" _

"_You don't have to take it out on me! None of this is my fault!" Naruto's tails were a mad fan, waving angrily. The fox shook his head and turned away. "Maybe it's time you and I came to an agreement," the fox said at last._

_Naruto cocked his head. "An agreement…? How so, fox?" The Kyuubi snorted and turned back to glare at Naruto._

"_You really want to talk to him about this, Kurama…?" Naruto spun to see the black fox stalking towards them. _

"_What in the…?" _

"_Shut up," the dark creature snapped before turning to the Kyuubi. "I thought you and I had a deal. I would let you feed off our hatred and you wouldn't socialize with this brat." The massive demon shook his head. "Come on, Kurama! You really want to trust him?"_

"_Kurama…?"_

"_I said hush!" Naruto shut his mouth. _

"_I figured that it was time I did away with Naruto's true self and started talking to this one. Maybe we'll get somewhere!" _

"_We're getting places! If only the orange one would shut up and just let us work!" the dark creature snarled. ""He tries so hard to save these people that only hated him! You and I could destroy them! This form is perfect!"_

_The Kyuubi narrowed his eyes. Naruto stepped back. "Don't I have a say so in this…?" he asked._

"_No…" the Kyuubi muttered. "But neither does your True Self." He indicated to the dark fox. "I called you here for a reason, Naruto. My name is Kurama…"_

"_You… have a name?"_

"_If you had bothered to ask a while ago, we might have gotten along better," Kurama pointed out with a shrug. _

"_Why are you telling me this now? I thought you hated me."_

"_I do," the fox snapped. The dark fox was shifting angrily, seeing his control slipping away from him. "But you can't survive in this world without my help!"_

"_Am I picking up some caring on your part?" Naruto asked, cocking his head._

"_Don't flatter yourself. If you die, I go down with you," Kurama snapped. _

"_I could offer you that and more!" the dark fox snarled, desperate to gain the upper hand. "We can make them pay, Kurama! You and I! We don't need the brat!"_

"Silence_!" Kurama shouted, making the black fox scurry backwards angrily. _

"_You'll regret this, Kurama," he hissed before disappeared down one of the darker corridors in the room. Naruto sighed and turned back to the fox's cage, only to find it beginning to blue. _

"_Time to wake up, Kit… I'll figure this out and call you when I'm ready…"_

"_Kit…?" _Naruto asked, but the familiar shape of the cage vanished and faded into a white wall. Naruto blinked. He was in the hospital. That much he knew. The building was now more of vet's office than a hospital. A vet's office at the zoo, that is. The door was cracked to allow entrance since most of the doctors in the hospital now lacked thumbs… or hands for that matter. Naruto rolled over gently and noticed that there were no IV drips in his arm… leg?

The fox stood slowly and leapt from the bed. He landed lightly and looked around the room. The first thing he noticed was the blue and gray mass sleeping soundly just outside the reach of the door. Naruto smiled at Kakashi. The man turned lion must have been there for quite some time and Naruto knew that Kakashi wouldn't dare let him leave… not with the wounds he had suffered. But Naruto needed time to clear his head and think about the conversation he had with the fo—_Kurama…_ he corrected silently, and the black, demonic presence that seemed to have been unleashed by this whole thing.

Naruto slipped out the cracked window and gracefully jumped onto the ground from the second story window. He flicked his tails at the window he had just left and walked towards his old apartment. Since their strange journey to an alternate universe, Naruto had moved in with Kakashi and his family and old team. The house they now lived in was huge, but Naruto would never forget the small, single bedroom apartment that served as his home for the first decade or so of his life.

He went to walk up the stairs leading to his old home, but stopped. A small cat walked from the open door, followed by a large dog. Naruto sighed. _Guess it wasn't mine anymore… _he thought, but that didn't stop him from feeling the pain of not being able to visit his home. He flicked a few of his tails and turned.

He ran. He didn't know where, but he ran. Suddenly he wanted to be as far away as possible. He didn't stop until he was well passed the village gates and in the forest surrounding his home. The boy stopped at a lake that often served a thinking spot for people in the village. No one was there today, however. Naruto stared at the glassy surface of the lake as he dug his paw into the dirt on the shore.

With an angry snarl, the fox lunged, shattering the glass. He dove as far as his lungs would allow and then stayed there, staring at the sun shine through the water above him. This whole mess was because of him. If he didn't have that stupid creature inside of him, none of this would have ever happened.

His lungs began protesting for air. Naruto hissed, releasing what little he had left and then lunged towards the surface, breaking just as the edges of his vision became fuzzy.

"I was wondering if you were gonna come up!"

Naruto spun to see a black tiger with orange stripes. "Obito!" he snapped and paddled towards the far shore. "How'd you know I was here?" he asked.

The tiger grinned. "Kakashi's not an idiot, you know. I was watching from the outside. I followed you here." Naruto spat and then jumped away when Obito tried to nudge him comfortingly. "Why so angry?" the man asked.

Naruto shook his head. "It's nothing…"

"Diving in a lake and then staying down isn't 'nothing', Naruto," Obito countered quietly. "What were you doing down there?"

"If you think I meant to drown myself, that's not what happened," Naruto snapped, suddenly defensive.

"I didn't say that…"

"But you thought it!" Naruto growled. Obito flattened his ears in annoyance.

"You've gotten a temper these past few days, Naruto!" he snapped, the fur along his back rising. Naruto's tails thrashed wildly. Both creatures looked ready to kill one another. Obito was the first to break their stare down. "This is _stupid!" _he growled, pulling away from Naruto. "We shouldn't be fighting…" Naruto also seemed to be slipping out of his anger, leaving a confused expression on his face.

"_Stop that, Kurama!" he growled, using the fox's name in hopes to gain the creature's cooperation._

"_It's not me!" the fox returned almost instantly. "It's your own hatred!"_

"_The black one?" Naruto asked. The fox shook his head. _

"_Worse… I think…"_

Naruto shook his head and looked at Obito, who was staring at him with a concerned expression. "It's nothing…" Naruto muttered. He looked up at the sky. "I guess Kakashi wants me back at the hospital, huh?"

"I don't see the point," Obito offered. "They can't do much. No one in there is trained to treat animals, and even if they were, they wouldn't have the means to treat them anyway, right?" Naruto nodded. They had no jutsu in these forms. Obito smiled softly, but Naruto didn't bother with it. He turned away and started towards the village gates. "Naruto!" Obito called. "Wait… please…"

Naruto stopped. "What?"

"I'm worried… About everyone."

"So am I," Naruto whispered. Obito shifted as if he had something to say. "This isn't _my_ fault!" he snarled.

"I didn't say it was…" Obito muttered. Naruto dug at the ground in agitation. "Never mind… just go…" Naruto turned on the tiger. The two faced off again, but Obito didn't look angry, just sad. Naruto, on the other hand, was staring intently at the tiger's neck, imagining how easy it would be to use his bigger, more muscular body to overpower the other creature and slice his throat with his sharp teeth and powerful jaw. The image of Obito's blood washing over his feet as he slowly bled to death not only didn't disturb Naruto, it almost thrilled him.

"_KIT!" _

Naruto blinked. Obito was staring back at him, his eyes wide and fearful. Naruto's feelings had obviously been shown in his face. The fox flattened his ears and stepped back. "Are you okay…?"

"Y-yeah… I just want to be alone…" he whimpered. Obito nodded and this time he didn't try to stop Naruto.

_The Great Naruto Bridge_

_Day Five_

_0715_

"You lied to me!" the horse bellowed to nothing. The creature before him was unseen. He didn't even know if the thing had answered his summons. He slammed his hoof into the ground angrily. "Show yourself!" he shouted, his mane flaming higher and hotter, almost getting a blue hue to it. He looked up at the sky, blinking at a dark form descending towards him.

Nagato stumbled back to allow the massive, serpentine creature room to land on the bridge. The beast was huge, though not quite large enough to eat the horse in one bite. Pain stomped his hoof in agitation and a bit of fear. The creature was darker than night, covered in fine, pitch black scales that didn't reflect the sun as much as it seemed to deny the touch as it shone through the dark storm clouds.

The head was the most impressive feature of the beast. Two long whiskers flowed from the dragon's wolf-like snout. The head was covered in black, velvet-like fur instead of the scales that covered the rest of the body. It had two, saber-canine that stuck out of its mouth. It could tear apart a victim in seconds; and its claws were no different. The clawed hands gripped the wooden bridge with almost enough force to destroy it, and Pain didn't doubt its ability to do just that. To top off the impressive design of the serpent, a long, membrane sail went from the top of the beast's head the tip of its tail, fanning out to make a rudder for flight. Overall, Pain knew he had met his match.

"It is _you_ who has failed _me!" _the dragon howled. Pain shook his head. "You _had _him! And then you let those moronic Konoha ninja take him back! It is about time you gave up your hold over the Akatasuki!"

"And who do you think you are?" Pain snorted. "You have no right to kick me out of this group!"

The Dragon bellowed and a massive fireball flew towards the horse. Pain whinnied and jumped back. He was at a disadvantage in this fight. The dragon could fly and he was stuck on the bridge that was now flaming. The dragon seemed to understand this as well. He pushed off the bridge and hovered over the flaming structure. Pain turned and fled, running away from the Land of Waves and towards the forest opposite the bridge.

The dragon howled and lunged towards the fleeing beast. Pain bucked wildly, getting the creature in the lupine snout. The dragon screamed in pain and the horse fled faster, regaining his balance. He made it to the tree line and broke into a faster run when his pursuer came behind him, weaving through the trees like they weren't there. Dodging was a little harder for the horse, but he managed. He wasn't as big as the dragon, so he didn't have to move as much; but for every sharp turn, the dragon matched it with expert precession.

Pain began to panic. His mane flared and the forest around him lit up like a candle. Pain was hoping to take out the raging beast with the elements, but nothing seemed to be slowing the chase. Pain felt his sides heaving. In this form, he didn't have the luxury of not feeling pain and exhaustion. He screamed and spun around, ready to face the dragon with the best he had. The dragon stopped before the horse as Pain reared to smack his opponent with his hooves.

He didn't hit his target and he cursed. The forest around them was ablaze with the fire from both Pain's attacks and the fire balls of the dragon. The serpent wove around Pain, circling him. The tail rammed into the horse's side. Pain screamed again. He shook his head and kicked out with his hooves. He cursed not having any jutsu and he cursed the horrid thing that did this to them. _This must have been his plan! We could have done this without the jutsu! I was a fool…_

The two massive forces stared each other down. Pain felt as if one of his legs might be broken or at least sprained, and blood poured from the dragon's snout. It lunged and Pain spun, bucking the creature again, this time getting it in the throat. A gurgling scream came from the monster as it began thrashing in pain. Nagato was swift. He spun on two legs and brought down his hooves on the dragon's jaw and neck. Blood gushed from the monstrosity's mouth. Pain reared for a second strike, but the tail whipped around, throwing him against and through several burning trees. His mane was all but extinguished, a sign of exhaustion and defeat. The flames licked at his black flesh. Unlike his mane, these flames could kill him. Pain tried to stand. His legs shook and his sides heaved as blood poured from multiple gashes and burns gotten from his flight through the trees.

He lifted his head weakly and stumbled back as the dragon hovered before him. "You've outlived your usefulness…" the beast hissed before it struck like a cobra.

_Tanzuka Town_

_Day Five_

_1043_

Kabuto was tired and annoyed with this whole thing. He was still stalking Sasuke, though the latter knew that he was there, so that nullified his whole mission. But he knew that if he went home, Orochimaru would skin him alive and make a rug from his purple hide. The horse snorted as he watched the winged humanoid stalk through the town's deserted streets. Kabuto followed silently. _At least he put on pants, _the horse though bitterly. Where the wayward Uchiha acquired pants was behind Kabuto and he didn't really want to know at this point.

Sasuke was looking for anything that would lead him to his brother, but Kabuto knew that after the storm they just had, they would never find a trail, but he didn't even bother to try and deter Sasuke from his manic mission. "This is stupid!" he snorted.

"Why don't you just go home, then?" Sasuke asked. Kabuto cursed. He hadn't noticed that Sasuke had stopped. "Run home to your little master, Kabuto," he suggested.

"Partner," Kabuto muttered, though he knew what Sasuke said was true. "Because I have my orders."

"You could help," Sasuke offered without looking at his indigo stalker. Kabuto rolled his eyes and dug a hoof in the muddy ground. "Or you could continue to complain about our plight."

"Look who knows fancy words," Kabuto spat. Sasuke sighed and continued walking. "How'd you turn into a human, anyway?" he asked suddenly.

Sasuke shrugged. "I wanted it… and then I got it."

"Well, whoop-dee-doo for you," Kabuto snapped.

"You asked," Sasuke pointed out with a shrug. He continued walking with his equine shadow following closely behind. Sasuke suddenly stopped. He spun and grabbed Kabuto's white mane and swung onto his back.

"Oh, no! You do not!" Kabuto reared and bucked, but Sasuke stayed on. "You have _wings!"_

"So?" Sasuke asked. He dug his feet in Kabuto's side. "Just go!"

"Go where?" Kabuto asked as he took off in a fast gallop.

"You'll see!"

"But _I'm_ the one running!"

"But you aren't the one driving," Sasuke pointed out in a matter-of-fact tone. Kabuto jumped into the air and bucked again, but still didn't dislodge his passenger. The horse landed heavily and ran faster, digging his hooves into the ground to go faster. Sasuke was doing surprisingly well riding bareback, but Kabuto would never admit to that.

Kabuto snorted and took off towards the entrance of the town, having no choice but to let Sasuke steer him in the direction he wanted to go. As he continued, he let his mind wander. He found a rhythm that worked for both mount and rider and stuck with it. Sasuke didn't complain and Kabuto was finding it almost disturbingly natural for him to follow Sasuke's subtle steering. He hardly had to think as they rode towards wherever Sasuke saw fit, and he just let himself sink into the steady pace he had set.

When the two eventually stopped, Kabuto's sides were heaving. Sasuke absently patted Kabuto's neck. The horse looked at where they were. They had gone far. Storm clouds still covered the area, so he couldn't tell the time, but by the way his legs felt, he was sure they had been running for at least two hours.

They stood at the edge of a cliff overlooking a forest… and in the center of that forest, they saw a massive structure. "What is that….?" Kabuto asked. Sasuke clicked his teeth and urged the horse forward, going down a small path the lead down the cliff. He repeated the question and Sasuke didn't look anywhere but straight.

"It's our destination… The Uchiha Hideout…"

_Author's note: YYAAAYY! I FINISHED IT! XD Be proud of my, you readers you! Hope you enjoyed it!_


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